Thomas Hearne
Encyclopedia
Thomas Hearne or Hearn (July 1678 – 10 June 1735), English antiquary, was born at Littlefield Green in the parish of White Waltham
, Berkshire
.
of Shottesbrooke
(c. 1665-1713), a celebrated non-juror
, interested himself in the boy, and sent him to the school at Bray
"on purpose to learn the Latin
tongue." Soon Cherry took him into his own house, and his education was continued at Bray until Easter 1696, when he matriculated at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
.
At the university he attracted the attention of Dr John Mill
(1645–1707), the principal of St Edmund Hall, who employed him to compare manuscripts and in other ways. Having taken the degree of B.A. in 1699 he was made assistant keeper of the Bodleian Library
, where he worked on the catalogue of books, and in 1712 he was appointed second keeper. In 1715 Hearne was elected Architypographus and Esquire Bedell
in civil law in the university, but objection having been made to his holding this office together with that of second librarian, he resigned it in the same year.
As a nonjuror he refused to take the oaths of allegiance to King George I, and early in 1716 he was deprived of his librarianship. However, he continued to reside in Oxford, and occupied himself in editing the English chroniclers. Hearn refused several important academic positions, including the librarianship of the Bodleian and the Camden professorship of ancient history, rather than take the oaths. He died on 10 June 1735.
The readers of Hearne's works were devoted to them because of the depth of scholarship. Hearne, for instance, corresponded frequently with Dr. Henry Levett
, an early English physician and medical doctor at Charterhouse
, London. In November of 1715, indicating the devotion of Hearne's readers, he reminded Dr. Levett
that "you formerly desired to be a subscriber for every Thing I published. I have accordingly put you down for one copy of Acts of the Ap. in Capitals."
his editions were in many cases the only ones extant. Very carefully prepared, they were, and indeed are still, of the greatest value to historical students. Perhaps the most important of a long list are:
He also edited
He brought out editions of
Among his other compilations may be mentioned:
Hearn left his manuscripts to William Bedford
, who sold them to Dr Richard Rawlinson
, who in his turn bequeathed them to the Bodleian. Two volumes of extracts from his voluminous diary were published by Philip Bliss
(Oxford, 1857), and afterwards an enlarged edition in three volumes appeared (London, 1869). A large part of his diary entitled Remarks and Collections, 1705–1714, edited by C. E. Doble and D. W. Rannie, has been published by the Oxford Historical Society (1885–1898). Bibliotheca Hearniana, excerpts from the catalogue of Hearn's library, has been edited by B. Botfield (1848).
Hearne's work in publishing these old manuscripts was not appreciated by all: Alexander Pope
dismisses them as unappealing and "monkish" in An Epistle to Burlington and satirizes Hearne as the pedant Wormius in The Dunciad
, dropping into mock-Old English to do so. This in turn led Hearne in his diary to insult Pope's lack of scholarship.
White Waltham
White Waltham is a village and civil parish, west of Maidenhead, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the English county of Berkshire. It has a population of 2,875, and is the location of White Waltham Airfield.-Extent:...
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
Life
Having received his early education from his father, George Hearn, the parish clerk, he showed such taste for study that a wealthy neighbour, Francis CherryFrancis Cherry (non-juror)
Francis Cherry was an English layman and non-juror, known as a philanthropist and benefactor.-Life:The son of William and Anne Cherry of Shottesbrooke in Berkshire, he was born in Maidenhead in 1665, and was a gentleman commoner of St Edmund Hall, Oxford. Soon after age 20 he married Eliza,...
of Shottesbrooke
Shottesbrooke
Shottesbrooke is a hamlet and civil parish administered by the unitary authority of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the English county of Berkshire. The parish has an area of and had a population of 154 at the 2001 census.-Geography:...
(c. 1665-1713), a celebrated non-juror
Non-juror
A non-juror is a person who refuses to swear a particular oath.* In British history, non-jurors refused to swear allegiance to William and Mary; see Nonjuring schism...
, interested himself in the boy, and sent him to the school at Bray
Bray
Bray is a town in north County Wicklow, Ireland. It is a busy urban centre and seaside resort, with a population of 31,901 making it the fourth largest in Ireland as of the 2006 census...
"on purpose to learn the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
tongue." Soon Cherry took him into his own house, and his education was continued at Bray until Easter 1696, when he matriculated at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...
.
At the university he attracted the attention of Dr John Mill
John Mill
John Mill was an English theologian. He is noted for his critical edition of the Greek New Testament which included notes on many variant readings.-Biography:...
(1645–1707), the principal of St Edmund Hall, who employed him to compare manuscripts and in other ways. Having taken the degree of B.A. in 1699 he was made assistant keeper of the Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
, where he worked on the catalogue of books, and in 1712 he was appointed second keeper. In 1715 Hearne was elected Architypographus and Esquire Bedell
Esquire Bedell
An Esquire Bedell is a junior ceremonial officer of a university, usually with official duties relating to the conduct of ceremonies for the conferment of degrees. The word is closely related to the archaic Bedel and modern English Beadle. The term is primarily associated with universities in the...
in civil law in the university, but objection having been made to his holding this office together with that of second librarian, he resigned it in the same year.
As a nonjuror he refused to take the oaths of allegiance to King George I, and early in 1716 he was deprived of his librarianship. However, he continued to reside in Oxford, and occupied himself in editing the English chroniclers. Hearn refused several important academic positions, including the librarianship of the Bodleian and the Camden professorship of ancient history, rather than take the oaths. He died on 10 June 1735.
The readers of Hearne's works were devoted to them because of the depth of scholarship. Hearne, for instance, corresponded frequently with Dr. Henry Levett
Henry Levett
Dr. Henry Levett was an early English physician who wrote a pioneering tract on the treatment of smallpox and served as chief physician at London Charterhouse....
, an early English physician and medical doctor at Charterhouse
London Charterhouse
The London Charterhouse is a historic complex of buildings in Smithfield, London dating back to the 14th century. It occupies land to the north of Charterhouse Square. The Charterhouse began as a Carthusian priory, founded in 1371 and dissolved in 1537...
, London. In November of 1715, indicating the devotion of Hearne's readers, he reminded Dr. Levett
Levett
Levett is an Anglo-Norman territorial surname deriving from the village of Livet-en-Ouche, now Jonquerets-de-Livet, in Eure, Normandy. Ancestors of the earliest Levett family in England, the de Livets were lords of the village of Livet, and undertenants of the de Ferrers, among the most powerful of...
that "you formerly desired to be a subscriber for every Thing I published. I have accordingly put you down for one copy of Acts of the Ap. in Capitals."
Works
Hearne's most important work was done as editor of many of the English chroniclers, and until the appearance of the Rolls SeriesRolls Series
The Rolls Series, official title The Chronicles and Memorials of Great Britain and Ireland during the Middle Ages, is a major collection of British and Irish historical materials and primary sources, published in the second half of the 19th century. Some 255 volumes, representing 99 separate...
his editions were in many cases the only ones extant. Very carefully prepared, they were, and indeed are still, of the greatest value to historical students. Perhaps the most important of a long list are:
- Benedict of Peterborough's (Benedictus Abbas) De vita et gestis Henrici II. et Ricardi I. (1735)
- John of FordunJohn of FordunJohn of Fordun was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th century; and it is probable that he was a chaplain in the St Machar's Cathedral of...
's Scotichronicon (1722) - the monk of Evesham's Historia vitae et regni Ricardi II (1729)
- Robert MannyngRobert MannyngRobert Manning was an English chronicler and Gilbertine monk. Mannyng provides a surprising amount of information about himself in his two known works, Handlyng Synne and a Chronicle...
's translation of Piers LangtoftPiers LangtoftPeter Langtoft, also known as Peter of Langtoft was an English historian and chronicler who took his name from the small village of Langtoft in the East Riding of Yorkshire....
's Chronicle (1725) - the work of Thomas Otterbourne and John WhethamstedeJohn WhethamstedeJohn Whethamstede , English abbot, was a son of Hugh Bostock, and was born at Wheathampstead in Hertfordshire, owing his name, the Latin form of which is Frumenlarius, to this circumstance....
as Duo rerum Anglicarum scriptores veteres (1732) - Robert of GloucesterRobert of Gloucester (historian)Robert of Gloucester wrote a chronicle of British, English, and Norman history sometime in the mid- or late-thirteenth century. The Chronicle survives in some 16 manuscripts, ranging in date from the early fourteenth to mid-fifteenth centuries, and was of considerable interest to contemporaries...
's Chronicle (1724) - Thomas Sprott's Chronica (1719)
- the Vita et gesta Henrici V, which he wrongly attributed to Thomas ElmhamThomas Elmham-Life:He was probably born at North Elmham in Norfolk. He may have been the Thomas Elmham who was a scholar at King's Hall, Cambridge from 1389 to 1394...
and which now goes under the designation Ps-Elmham (1727) - the Vita Henrici V of Tito Livio FrulovisiTito Livio FrulovisiTito Livio Frulovisi was a humanist from Ferrara and grew up in Venice. It was there that he wrote his first works, a set of comedies which were performed by schoolboys. They were some of the first examples of this genre in Renaissance Italy. In the early 1430s, Frulovisi travelled to Naples and...
(1716) - Walter of HemingburghWalter of HemingburghWalter of Guisborough was a canon regular of the Augustinian Gisborough Priory, Yorkshire and English chronicler of the fourteenth century.His chronicle, The Chronicle of Walter of Guisborough , embraces the period of English history from the Conquest to the nineteenth year of Edward III, with the...
's Chronicon (1731) - William of NewburghWilliam of NewburghWilliam of Newburgh or Newbury , also known as William Parvus, was a 12th-century English historian and Augustinian canon from Bridlington, Yorkshire.-Biography:...
's Historia rerum Anglicarum (1719).
He also edited
- John Leland's Itinerary (1710–1712) and the same author's Collectanea (1715)
- W. Camden's Annales rerum Anglicarum et Hibernicarum regnante Elizabetha (1717)
- Sir John Spelman's Life of Alfred (1709)
- William Roper's Life of Sir Thomas More (1716).
He brought out editions of
- LivyLivyTitus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
(1708) - PlinyPliny the ElderGaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
's Epistolae et panegyricus (1703) - Acts of the ApostlesActs of the ApostlesThe Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
(1715).
Among his other compilations may be mentioned:
- Ductor historicus, a Short System of Universal History (1704, 1705, 1714, 1724)
- A Collection of Curious Discourses by Eminent Antiquaries (1720)
- Reliquiae Bodleianae (1703).
Hearn left his manuscripts to William Bedford
William Bedford
William Bedford is a retired American professional basketball player who was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the 1st round of the 1986 NBA Draft after playing at Memphis State University...
, who sold them to Dr Richard Rawlinson
Richard Rawlinson
Richard Rawlinson FRS was an English clergyman and antiquarian collector of books and manuscripts, which he bequeathed to the Bodleian Library, Oxford.-Life:...
, who in his turn bequeathed them to the Bodleian. Two volumes of extracts from his voluminous diary were published by Philip Bliss
Philip Bliss
Philip Paul Bliss was an American composer, conductor, bass-baritone writer of hymns and a Gospel singer. He wrote many well-known hymns, including Almost Persuaded, Hallelujah, What a Saviour!, Let the Lower Lights Be Burning, Wonderful Words of Life, and the tune for Horatio Spafford's It Is...
(Oxford, 1857), and afterwards an enlarged edition in three volumes appeared (London, 1869). A large part of his diary entitled Remarks and Collections, 1705–1714, edited by C. E. Doble and D. W. Rannie, has been published by the Oxford Historical Society (1885–1898). Bibliotheca Hearniana, excerpts from the catalogue of Hearn's library, has been edited by B. Botfield (1848).
Hearne's work in publishing these old manuscripts was not appreciated by all: Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope was an 18th-century English poet, best known for his satirical verse and for his translation of Homer. He is the third-most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, after Shakespeare and Tennyson...
dismisses them as unappealing and "monkish" in An Epistle to Burlington and satirizes Hearne as the pedant Wormius in The Dunciad
The Dunciad
The Dunciad is a landmark literary satire by Alexander Pope published in three different versions at different times. The first version was published in 1728 anonymously. The second version, the Dunciad Variorum was published anonymously in 1729. The New Dunciad, in four books and with a...
, dropping into mock-Old English to do so. This in turn led Hearne in his diary to insult Pope's lack of scholarship.