Richard Rowlands
Encyclopedia
Richard Rowlands Anglo
-Dutch
antiquary, whose real name was Verstegen (usually anglicized Verstegan), was the son of a cooper
established in East London. His grandfather, Theodore Roland Verstegen, a Dutch emigrant, came from Gelderland
to the Kingdom of England
c. 1500.
, in 1564, where he may have studied early English history and the Anglo-Saxon language. Leaving the university without a degree (having become a Catholic), he was indentured to a goldsmith, and became a Freeman of the Company of Goldsmiths in 1574.
He published in 1576 a guidebook to Western Europe, translated from the German
, entitled The Post of the World.
At the end of 1581 he secretly printed an account of the execution of Edmund Campion
but was discovered and 'being apprehended, brake out of England'. In exile he resumed the name of Verstegen.
In Paris he was briefly imprisoned at the insistence of the English Ambassador; in Rome, he was the recipient of a short-lived pension from the pope. In both of these cities he published accounts of the suffering of priests in England.
In 1585 or 1586 he moved to Antwerp, and set up in business as a publisher and engraver, an intelligencer, and a smuggler of books and people. He spent the rest of his long life in Antwerp, dying there in 1640.
rebels under Tyrone
, entitled England's Joy, by R. R. (1601), have mistakenly been attributed to him.
The Nederlantsche Antiquiteyten, published from 1613 onwards in a variety of editions (1631, 1646, 1662, 1700, 1701, 1705, 1714, 1725, 1733, 1756, 1809), is an adaptation of his Restitution of Decayed Intelligence. From 1617 to about 1630 Verstegan was a prolific writer in Dutch, producing epigrams, characters, jestbooks, polemics. He also penned journalistic commentaries, satires and editorials for the Nieuwe Tijdinghen
(New Tidings) printed in Antwerp by Abraham Verhoeven
from 1620 to 1629. This makes him one of the earliest identifiable newspaper
journalists in Europe.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
antiquary, whose real name was Verstegen (usually anglicized Verstegan), was the son of a cooper
Cooper (profession)
Traditionally, a cooper is someone who makes wooden staved vessels of a conical form, of greater length than breadth, bound together with hoops and possessing flat ends or heads...
established in East London. His grandfather, Theodore Roland Verstegen, a Dutch emigrant, came from Gelderland
Gelderland
Gelderland is the largest province of the Netherlands, located in the central eastern part of the country. The capital city is Arnhem. The two other major cities, Nijmegen and Apeldoorn have more inhabitants. Other major regional centers in Gelderland are Ede, Doetinchem, Zutphen, Tiel, Wijchen,...
to the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
c. 1500.
Biography
Under the name of Rowlaunde, Richard went to Christ Church, OxfordChrist Church, Oxford
Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
, in 1564, where he may have studied early English history and the Anglo-Saxon language. Leaving the university without a degree (having become a Catholic), he was indentured to a goldsmith, and became a Freeman of the Company of Goldsmiths in 1574.
He published in 1576 a guidebook to Western Europe, translated from the German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, entitled The Post of the World.
At the end of 1581 he secretly printed an account of the execution of Edmund Campion
Edmund Campion
Saint Edmund Campion, S.J. was an English Roman Catholic martyr and Jesuit priest. While conducting an underground ministry in officially Protestant England, Campion was arrested by priest hunters. Convicted of high treason by a kangaroo court, he was hanged, drawn and quartered at Tyburn...
but was discovered and 'being apprehended, brake out of England'. In exile he resumed the name of Verstegen.
In Paris he was briefly imprisoned at the insistence of the English Ambassador; in Rome, he was the recipient of a short-lived pension from the pope. In both of these cities he published accounts of the suffering of priests in England.
In 1585 or 1586 he moved to Antwerp, and set up in business as a publisher and engraver, an intelligencer, and a smuggler of books and people. He spent the rest of his long life in Antwerp, dying there in 1640.
Works
His original works include Theatrum Crudelitatum haereticorum nostri temporis (= Theatre of the Cruelties of the heretics of our time) (1587); A Restitution of Decayed Intelligence in Antiquities concerning the most noble and renowned English Nation (1605; reprinted 1628, 1634, 1652, 1655, 1673); Neder Duytsche Epigrammen (1617); Sundry Successive Regal Governments in England (1620); and Spiegel der Nederlandsche Elenden (1621). The verses on the defeat of the IrishIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
rebels under Tyrone
Tyrone
The name Tyrone can refer to:*County Tyrone, a county in Northern Ireland, roughly corresponding to the ancient kingdom of Tír Eogain*An Earl of Tyrone*A small steam train which runs between Bushmills and the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland-Places:...
, entitled England's Joy, by R. R. (1601), have mistakenly been attributed to him.
The Nederlantsche Antiquiteyten, published from 1613 onwards in a variety of editions (1631, 1646, 1662, 1700, 1701, 1705, 1714, 1725, 1733, 1756, 1809), is an adaptation of his Restitution of Decayed Intelligence. From 1617 to about 1630 Verstegan was a prolific writer in Dutch, producing epigrams, characters, jestbooks, polemics. He also penned journalistic commentaries, satires and editorials for the Nieuwe Tijdinghen
Nieuwe Tijdinghen
Nieuwe Tijdinghen is the name cataloguers and bibliographers have given to the first Flemish newspaper, which was published without a single fixed title. News was printed from across Western and Central Europe....
(New Tidings) printed in Antwerp by Abraham Verhoeven
Abraham Verhoeven
Abraham Verhoeven was the publisher of the first newspaper of the Southern Netherlands .From 1605 he was licensed to print news of military victories in woodblock or copperplate. Thereafter he produced not only prints but also, with increasing frequency, illustrated news pamphlets...
from 1620 to 1629. This makes him one of the earliest identifiable newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
journalists in Europe.