William George Clark
Encyclopedia
William George Clark English
classical
and Shakespearean
scholar, was born at Barford Hall, Darlington
.
He was educated at Sedbergh School
and Shrewsbury School and Trinity College, Cambridge
, where he was elected fellow after a brilliant university career. In 1857 he was appointed Public Orator. He travelled much during the long vacations, visiting Spain, Greece
, Italy
and Poland
. His Peloponnesus (1858) was an important contribution to the knowledge of the country at that time. In 1853 Clark had taken orders, but left the Church in 1870 after the passing of the Clerical Disabilities Act, of which he was one of the promoters. He also resigned the public oratorship in the same year, and in consequence of illness left Cambridge in 1873. He died at York on 6 November 1878.
He bequeathed a sum of money to his old college for the foundation of a lectureship in English literature. Although Clark was before all a classical scholar, he published little in that branch of learning. A contemplated edition of the works of Aristophanes
, a task for which he was singularly fitted, was never published. He visited Italy
in 1868 for the express purpose of examining the Ravenna and other manuscripts, and on his return began the notes to the Acharnians, but they were left in too incomplete a state to admit of publication in book form even after his death (see Journal of Philology, viii, 1879).
He established the Cambridge Journal of Philology, and cooperated with BH Kennedy
and James Riddell in the production of the well-known Sabrinae Corolla. The work by which he is best known is the Cambridge Shakespeare (1863–6), containing a collation of early editions and selected emendations, edited by him at first with John Glover and afterwards with W. Aldis Wright
. Gazpacho (1853) gives an account of his tour in Spain; his visits to Italy at the time of Garibaldi
's insurrection, and to Poland during the insurrection of 1863, are described in Vacation Tourists, ed. F. Galton
, i and iii.
HAJ Munro in Journal of Philology (viii. 1879) describes Clark as "the most accomplished and versatile man he ever met"; see also notices by W. Aldis Wright in Academy (Nov. 23, 1878); R. Burn in Athenaeum (Nov. 16, 1878); The Times
(Nov. 8, 1878); Notes and Queries
, 5th series, x (1878), p. 400.
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...
classical
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
and Shakespearean
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
scholar, was born at Barford Hall, Darlington
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, part of the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It lies on the small River Skerne, a tributary of the River Tees, not far from the main river. It is the main population centre in the borough, with a population of 97,838 as of 2001...
.
He was educated at Sedbergh School
Sedbergh School
Sedbergh School is a boarding school in Sedbergh, Cumbria, for boys and girls aged 13 to 18. Nestled in the Howgill Fells, it is known for sporting sides, such as its Rugby Union 1st XV.-Background:...
and Shrewsbury School and Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, where he was elected fellow after a brilliant university career. In 1857 he was appointed Public Orator. He travelled much during the long vacations, visiting Spain, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. His Peloponnesus (1858) was an important contribution to the knowledge of the country at that time. In 1853 Clark had taken orders, but left the Church in 1870 after the passing of the Clerical Disabilities Act, of which he was one of the promoters. He also resigned the public oratorship in the same year, and in consequence of illness left Cambridge in 1873. He died at York on 6 November 1878.
He bequeathed a sum of money to his old college for the foundation of a lectureship in English literature. Although Clark was before all a classical scholar, he published little in that branch of learning. A contemplated edition of the works of Aristophanes
Aristophanes
Aristophanes , son of Philippus, of the deme Cydathenaus, was a comic playwright of ancient Athens. Eleven of his forty plays survive virtually complete...
, a task for which he was singularly fitted, was never published. He visited Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 1868 for the express purpose of examining the Ravenna and other manuscripts, and on his return began the notes to the Acharnians, but they were left in too incomplete a state to admit of publication in book form even after his death (see Journal of Philology, viii, 1879).
He established the Cambridge Journal of Philology, and cooperated with BH Kennedy
Benjamin Hall Kennedy
Benjamin Hall Kennedy was an English scholar and schoolmaster, known for his work in the teaching of the Latin language.-Biography:...
and James Riddell in the production of the well-known Sabrinae Corolla. The work by which he is best known is the Cambridge Shakespeare (1863–6), containing a collation of early editions and selected emendations, edited by him at first with John Glover and afterwards with W. Aldis Wright
William Aldis Wright
William Aldis Wright , was an English writer and editor.William Aldis Wright was son of George Wright, a Baptist minister in Beccles. He was educated at Beccles Grammar School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated BA in 1858...
. Gazpacho (1853) gives an account of his tour in Spain; his visits to Italy at the time of Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian military and political figure. In his twenties, he joined the Carbonari Italian patriot revolutionaries, and fled Italy after a failed insurrection. Garibaldi took part in the War of the Farrapos and the Uruguayan Civil War leading the Italian Legion, and...
's insurrection, and to Poland during the insurrection of 1863, are described in Vacation Tourists, ed. F. Galton
Francis Galton
Sir Francis Galton /ˈfrɑːnsɪs ˈgɔːltn̩/ FRS , cousin of Douglas Strutt Galton, half-cousin of Charles Darwin, was an English Victorian polymath: anthropologist, eugenicist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, psychometrician, and statistician...
, i and iii.
HAJ Munro in Journal of Philology (viii. 1879) describes Clark as "the most accomplished and versatile man he ever met"; see also notices by W. Aldis Wright in Academy (Nov. 23, 1878); R. Burn in Athenaeum (Nov. 16, 1878); The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
(Nov. 8, 1878); Notes and Queries
Notes and Queries
Notes and Queries is a long-running quarterly scholarly journal that publishes short articles related to "English language and literature, lexicography, history, and scholarly antiquarianism". Its emphasis is on "the factual rather than the speculative"...
, 5th series, x (1878), p. 400.