John Whyte

Brother to Sir Joh. Whyte L. Mayor of London an. 1563. Son of Rob. Whyte of Farnham in Surrey, Son of Joh. Whyte of the same place; Son of Thom. Whyte of Purvyle in Hampshire, was born at Farnham before mentioned, educated in Grammar learning in Wykeham’s School near Winchester, admitted true and perpetual Fellow of New Coll. in 1527, took the Degrees in Arts, that of Master being compleated in an Act celebrated 23 March 1533-4 left his Fellowship in 1534. being about that time Master of the said School, in the place of Rich. Tuchiner. Afterwards he was made Warden of the College near to Winchester, was elected Bishop of Lincolne upon the deprivation of Dr. Joh. Tayler; the Temporalities of which were (i)(i) Pat. 1. R. Mar. p. 1. restored to him 2. May 1554, he being then Bach. of Divinity. In the beginning of Octob. 1555. he was incorporated Doctor of his faculty, and soon after, upon the death of Dr. St. Gardiner he was translated to Winchester, the Temporalities of which, were also restored (k)(k) Pat. 3. & 4. R. Phil. & Mar. p 6. to him, 30. May 1557. Of some of which gradual rises Dr. Christoph. Johnson one of his successors in the Mastership of Winchester School, made this distick.

Me puero custos, Ludi paulo ante Magister Vitus, & hâc demum praesul in urbe fuit.

He was a Man of an austere life, and much more mortified to the World than Step. Gardiner his Predecessor. He was eminent also for piety and learning, was an eloquent Orator, a solid Divine, a nervous Preacher, & poetica facultate, ut tempora ferebant, tolerabilis, as Camden (l)(l) Camden in Annal. Elizab. sub an. 1559. tells us. His fame and actions did well answer his name, and so did all Men say, how contrary soever to him in Religion, only for one black Sermon that he made, he gave offence, yet for the colour, it may be said he kept decorum, because it was a funeral Sermon of a great Queen by birth and marriage, I mean Qu. Mary: The offence taken against him was this. His (m)(m) See in the Brief view of the state of the Church of England, &c. by Jo. Harrington Knight, Lond. 1653. p. 59. 60. Text was out of Eccles. 4. 2. Laudavi mortuos magis quam viventes, & feliciorem utroque judicave qui nec dum damnatus est. And speaking of Qu. Mary her high parentage, her bountiful disposition, her great gravity, her rare devotion, (praying so much, as, he affirmed, that her knees were hard with kneeling) her justice and clemency in restoring noble houses to her own private loss and hindrance, and lastly her grevious and patient death, he fell into such an unfeigned weeping, that for a long space he could not speak. Then recovering himself, he said she had left a Sister to succeed her, a Lady of great worth also, whom, they were now bound to obey; for saith he, melior est canis vivus leone mortuo, and I hope so shall Reign well and prosperously over us, but I must say still with my Text Laudavi mortuos magis quam viventes, for certain it is Maria optimam partem elegit. Afterwards Qu Elizabeth taking just indignation, [〈◊〉] , partly for his Sermon, and partly for that he was a zealous Man for the R. Catholick cause, and an enemy to the reformers of Religion, commit him to custody; and for threatning (as ’tis said) to excommunicate her, (as Watson Bishop of Lincoln did) was deprived of his Bishoprick, for which he paid yearly 1000 l. to Cardinal Pole to keep up his state and dignity. His works are,

Diacosio Martyrion, i. e. ducentorum virorum testimonia, de veritate corporis, & sanguinis Christi in Eucharistiâ, ante triennium, adversus Petr. Martyrem, ex professo conscriptum, sed nunc primum in lucem editum. Lond. 1553. qu. in Lat. verse.

Epistola Petro Martyri. This is printed with the former Book, and treateth mostly of Martyrs disputation at Oxon. in K. Edwards days, and is in vindication of Dr. Rich. Smith, who disputed with, and baffled, him.

Epigrammatum, lib. 1. Carmina in Matrimon. Philippi Regis, cum Maria Regina Angliae.

Sermon Preached at the Funeral of Qu. Mary 13. Dec. 1558. on Eccles. 4. 2.—MS. in the Libr. sometimes of Rich. Smith Secondary of the Poultrey-Compter. You’ll find also several of his discourses in the Acts and Mon. of the Church, &c. published by Joh. Fox, and also his discourse with Bishop Rydley at Oxon 30. Sept. 1555, when he was about to be burnt, exhorting him to return from his Heresie, as he then term’d it. See also in Rob. Persons his animadversions on that discourse in The third part of a treatise intit. Of three conversions of England, &c. Printed 1604. Chap. 14. p. 209. At length our Author Jo. Whyte being deprived of his Bishoprick in June 1559. he retired to his Sisters house at Southwarnborow in Hampshire, where spending the little remainder of his days in great sanctity and recluseness,1559-60. gave way to fate on the eleventh day of January following. Whereupon his body was soon after carried to Winchester, and buried in the Cathedral there according to his will, which partly runs thus—“My desire is to be buried in that my Cathedral of Winchester, ut in novissima die resurgam cum patribus & filiis quorum fidem teneo, &c.” While he was Warden of the Coll. near Winchester, and dream’d not in the least to be removed thence to a Bishoprick, he provided a Tomb stone for himself to be laid on the ground in the Chappel belonging to the said Coll. with intentions to be buried under it, by the care of his Heir and Executor, whensoever it should please God to call him out of this transitory life, and caused to be engraven twenty long and short verses of his own composition, under his picture, engraven on a brass plate, and fastned to the said stone. The two first are these.

Hic tegor hic post fata Whitus propono jacere Scriptor Johannis carminis ipse mei.

But being afterwards contrary to all expectation promoted successively to two Bishopricks by Qu. Mary, his mind was altered, as I have before told you. He gave to Wykeham’s Coll. near Winchester his Miter and Crosier staff, a silver tankard guilt, a bason and eure of silver, a Turkey-carpet and other choice goods; and some years before his death he was a Benefactor to New Coll. as you may see in Hist. & Antiq. Univers. Oxon. lib. 2. p. 131. b.