Thomas Sprat: Difference between revisions
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His chief prose works are the ''Observations upon Monsieur de Sorbier's Voyage into England'' (London, 1665), a satirical reply to the strictures on Englishmen in [[Samuel de Sorbière]]'s book ''Relation d’un voyage en Angleterre'' (Paris, 1664), and a ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=g30OAAAAQAAJ History of the Royal Society of London]'' (London, 1667), which Sprat had helped to found. The ''History of the Royal Society'' elaborates the scientific purposes of the academy and outlines some of the strictures of scientific writing that set the modern standards for clarity and conciseness. |
His chief prose works are the ''Observations upon Monsieur de Sorbier's Voyage into England'' (London, 1665), a satirical reply to the strictures on Englishmen in [[Samuel de Sorbière]]'s book ''Relation d’un voyage en Angleterre'' (Paris, 1664), and a ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=g30OAAAAQAAJ History of the Royal Society of London]'' (London, 1667), which Sprat had helped to found. The ''History of the Royal Society'' elaborates the scientific purposes of the academy and outlines some of the strictures of scientific writing that set the modern standards for clarity and conciseness. |
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[[Image:Sprat.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Frontispiece to ''A History of the Royal Society,'' showing the crowning of King Charles II. Sir Francis Bacon is shown on the right; the president of the Society is on the left.]] |
[[Image:Sprat.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Frontispiece to ''A History of the Royal Society,'' showing the crowning of King Charles II. [[Sir Francis Bacon]] is shown on the right; [[Prince Rupert]], the president of the Society, is on the left.]] |
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In 1669 he became [[Canon (priest)|canon]] of [[Westminster Abbey]], and in 1670 [[rector]] of [[Uffington, Lincolnshire]]. He was chaplain to [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] in 1676, [[curate]] and lecturer at [[St. Margaret's, Westminster]], in 1679, canon of [[Windsor, Berkshire|Windsor]] in 1681, dean of Westminster in 1683 and [[Bishop of Rochester]] in 1684. |
In 1669 he became [[Canon (priest)|canon]] of [[Westminster Abbey]], and in 1670 [[rector]] of [[Uffington, Lincolnshire]]. He was chaplain to [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] in 1676, [[curate]] and lecturer at [[St. Margaret's, Westminster]], in 1679, canon of [[Windsor, Berkshire|Windsor]] in 1681, dean of Westminster in 1683 and [[Bishop of Rochester]] in 1684. |
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Revision as of 07:35, 4 March 2011
Thomas Sprat | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Rochester | |
 | |
| Installed | 1684 |
| Term ended | 1713 |
| Predecessor | Francis Turner |
| Successor | Francis Atterbury |
| Other post(s) | Dean of Westminster |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1635 |
| Died | 20 May 1713 |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Alma mater | Wadham College, Oxford |
Thomas Sprat (1635 – 20 May 1713), English divine, was born at Beaminster, Dorset, and educated at Wadham College, Oxford, where he held a fellowship from 1657 to 1670.
Having taken orders he became a prebendary of Lincoln Cathedral in 1660. In the preceding year he had gained a reputation by his poem To the Happie Memory of the most Renowned Prince Oliver, Lord Protector (London, 1659), and he was afterwards well known as a wit, preacher and man of letters.
His chief prose works are the Observations upon Monsieur de Sorbier's Voyage into England (London, 1665), a satirical reply to the strictures on Englishmen in Samuel de Sorbière's book Relation d’un voyage en Angleterre (Paris, 1664), and a History of the Royal Society of London (London, 1667), which Sprat had helped to found. The History of the Royal Society elaborates the scientific purposes of the academy and outlines some of the strictures of scientific writing that set the modern standards for clarity and conciseness.
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In 1669 he became canon of Westminster Abbey, and in 1670 rector of Uffington, Lincolnshire. He was chaplain to Charles II in 1676, curate and lecturer at St. Margaret's, Westminster, in 1679, canon of Windsor in 1681, dean of Westminster in 1683 and Bishop of Rochester in 1684.
He was a member of James II's ecclesiastical commission, and in 1688 he read the Declaration of Indulgence to empty benches in Westminster Abbey. The suggestion was that he was playing at being Vicar of Bray. Although he opposed the motion of 1689 declaring the throne vacant, he assisted at the coronation of William and Mary. As dean of Westminster he directed Christopher Wren's restoration of the abbey.
In 1692 a bizarre attempt was made to implicate him in a plot to restore the deposed king James II. This became known as the "flowerpot plot" because it involved a conspirator - a man named Robert Young - forging Sprats signature on a document, smuggling it into the Bishop's manor and hiding the paper under a flowerpot. The authorities were contacted about the document which led to the Bishop's arrest for high treason and the searching of his house - the forged document was eventually found where Young had said it would be. However Sprat was soon freed when it became clear that there was no case to answer.[1][2][3]
Notes
References
- Sprat, Thomas. History of the Royal Society of London, for the Improving of Natural Knowledge (London, 1667).
- Clinch, George. Antiquarian Jottings: relating to Bromley, Hayes Keston, and West Wickham, in Kent (1889).
- Johnson, Samuel. The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets: Vol. 2 (1821).
- . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
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