Richard Holdsworth
Encyclopedia
Richard Holdsworth (1590, Newcastle-on-Tyne – 22 August 1649) was an English academic theologian, and Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge
from 1637 to 1643. Although Emmanuel was a Puritan
stronghold, Holdsworth, who in religion agreed, in the political sphere resisted Parliamentary interference, and showed Royalist sympathies.
He was chaplain to Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet
. He was rector of St Peter-le-Poor, London in 1624.
He was in 1629 the first Gresham College
divinity lecturer appointed from the Puritan camp; he held the position until 1637. A London reputation brought him the presidency of Sion College
in 1639. He became Archdeacon of Huntingdon.
He was a member of the Westminster Assembly
. He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, for two years, and Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity
, from 1643. He lost his position as Master of Emmanuel, because of expressed royalist opinions; and was briefly imprisoned by Parliament.
He was appointed Dean of Worcester by the King, in 1647. It is also claimed that the King wanted to appoint him Bishop of Bristol
; this is mentioned by Thomas Fuller
. Given the wartime conditions, these appointments could have been taken up only with difficulty.
and Comenius
,, and a proponent of unadorned prose. His students at St. John's included Simonds D'Ewes
, whom he instructed by means of a system of note-taking.
He provided John Wallis with an introduction to William Oughtred
, steering Wallis towards mathematics (Wallis graduated BA at Emmanuel as Holdsworth arrived).
He was also a bibliophile who amassed a private collection of 10,000 books, bequeathed to the Cambridge University Library
. It arrived there in 1664, after a long legal limbo caused by testamentary conditions. It is said to have been the largest private collection of the time in England.
The Directions for a Student in the Universite has been attributed to him. The attribution is questioned by Hill as not certain. This work is a scheme of a four-year classical education.
Roger Maynwaring
Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay on the site of a Dominican friary...
from 1637 to 1643. Although Emmanuel was a Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
stronghold, Holdsworth, who in religion agreed, in the political sphere resisted Parliamentary interference, and showed Royalist sympathies.
Life
Richard Holdsworth was the son of Richard Holdswourth, Vicar of Newcastle-on-Tyne, and baptised at St Nicholas, Newcastle on 20 December 1590. He entered St. John's College, Cambridge as a scholar in 1607, graduated B.A. in 1610, and became a Fellow in 1613.He was chaplain to Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet
Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet
Sir Henry Hobart, 1st Baronet SL , of Blickling Hall, was an English judge and politician.The son of Thomas Hobart and Audrey Hare, and Great grandson of Sir James Hobart of Monks Eleigh, Suffolk, who served as Attorney General during the reign of King Henry VII.Sir Henry would further this lineal...
. He was rector of St Peter-le-Poor, London in 1624.
He was in 1629 the first Gresham College
Gresham College
Gresham College is an institution of higher learning located at Barnard's Inn Hall off Holborn in central London, England. It was founded in 1597 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham and today it hosts over 140 free public lectures every year within the City of London.-History:Sir Thomas Gresham,...
divinity lecturer appointed from the Puritan camp; he held the position until 1637. A London reputation brought him the presidency of Sion College
Sion College
Sion College, in London, is an institution founded by Royal Charter in 1630 as a college, guild of parochial clergy and almshouse, under the 1623 will of Thomas White, vicar of St Dunstan's in the West....
in 1639. He became Archdeacon of Huntingdon.
He was a member of the Westminster Assembly
Westminster Assembly
The Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
. He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, for two years, and Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity
Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity
The Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity is the oldest professorship at the University of Cambridge. It was founded initially as a readership by Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII, in 1502....
, from 1643. He lost his position as Master of Emmanuel, because of expressed royalist opinions; and was briefly imprisoned by Parliament.
He was appointed Dean of Worcester by the King, in 1647. It is also claimed that the King wanted to appoint him Bishop of Bristol
Bishop of Bristol
The Bishop of Bristol heads the Church of England Diocese of Bristol in the Province of Canterbury, in England.The present diocese covers parts of the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire together with a small area of Wiltshire...
; this is mentioned by Thomas Fuller
Thomas Fuller
Thomas Fuller was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his Worthies of England, published after his death...
. Given the wartime conditions, these appointments could have been taken up only with difficulty.
Educational views
He is said to have been a modernizer in education, in the line of Francis BaconFrancis Bacon
Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Albans, KC was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, author and pioneer of the scientific method. He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England...
and Comenius
Comenius
John Amos Comenius ; ; Latinized: Iohannes Amos Comenius) was a Czech teacher, educator, and writer. He served as the last bishop of Unity of the Brethren, and became a religious refugee and one of the earliest champions of universal education, a concept eventually set forth in his book Didactica...
,, and a proponent of unadorned prose. His students at St. John's included Simonds D'Ewes
Simonds d'Ewes
Sir Simonds d'Ewes, 1st Baronet was an antiquary and politician. He was bred for the bar, was a member of the Long Parliament and left notes on its transactions. d'Ewes took the Puritan side in the Civil War...
, whom he instructed by means of a system of note-taking.
He provided John Wallis with an introduction to William Oughtred
William Oughtred
William Oughtred was an English mathematician.After John Napier invented logarithms, and Edmund Gunter created the logarithmic scales upon which slide rules are based, it was Oughtred who first used two such scales sliding by one another to perform direct multiplication and division; and he is...
, steering Wallis towards mathematics (Wallis graduated BA at Emmanuel as Holdsworth arrived).
He was also a bibliophile who amassed a private collection of 10,000 books, bequeathed to the Cambridge University Library
Cambridge University Library
The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
. It arrived there in 1664, after a long legal limbo caused by testamentary conditions. It is said to have been the largest private collection of the time in England.
The Directions for a Student in the Universite has been attributed to him. The attribution is questioned by Hill as not certain. This work is a scheme of a four-year classical education.
Further reading
- John A. Trentman, "The Authorship of Directions for a Student in the Universitie," Transactions of the Cambridge Bibliographical Society, vol. 7, no. 2, 1978, pp. 170-183.
- Brent L. Nelson, "The Social Context of Rhetoric, 1500-1660," The Dictionary of Literary Biography, Volume 281: British Rhetoricians and Logicians, 1500-1660, Second Series, Detroit: Gale, 2003, pp. 355-377.
External links
Roger Maynwaring