William Thorne

, a most noted Linguist and Rabbie of his time, (and therefore well known to, and respected by, that noted Belgick Critick John Drusius, who dedicates to him his Opuscula Gramaticalia) received his first breath at Semeley in Wilts, his Grammatical education in Wykchams School, and his Academical in New coll. of which he became perpetual Fellow in 1587. being then esteemed to be well grounded in humane learning. In 1593. he proceeded in Arts, and five years after was constituted Hebrew Professor of the University. Afterwards being promoted to the Deanary of Chichester (in the room, as it seems, of Dr. Martin Colepeper deceased) he proceeded in Divinity; at which time he was reputed eminent, not only for his incomparable skill in the Oriental Sacred Tongues by men (c)(c) Joh. Drusius in Epist. ad Gram. Gra [•] .—Ab [•] l Curiard. in vita & [〈◊〉] Joh. [〈◊〉] & ahi ultra mare— [〈…〉] Arglus in Epist. ad Joh. Howson De [〈…〉] —Car. [〈…〉] in 3. lib. Epigram. &c. unmatchable in them (worthily famoused on this side, and beyond the Sea) but also for other learning. His writings are,

Tullius sive Rhetor, in tria stromata divisus. Oxon. 1592. octavo.

A kenning Glass for a Christian King, Serm. on Joh. 1 [•] . latter part of the 15. verse. Lond. 1623. oct. and other things, as ’tis said, but such I have not yet seen. He died 13. Feb. in sixteen hundred twenty and nine,1629-30. and was buried two days after in the Cath. Ch. at Chichester. In his Deanry of Chichester, succeeded Dr. Francis Dee of Cambridge, about that time Chancellour of the Chat Sarum, and afterwards Bishop of Peterborough.