Volume 2

Athenae Oxonienses. An exact history of all the writers and bishops who have had their education in the University of Oxford. To which are added the Fasti, or annals of the said university / By Anthony à Wood.

  • Anthony Wood
Date:
1813-1820
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Athenae Oxonienses. An exact history of all the writers and bishops who have had their education in the University of Oxford. To which are added the Fasti, or annals of the said university / By Anthony à Wood. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    became the chief master of St. Paul’s school, in London, being then a great antiquary for coins. One of both his names was made archdeacon of Stow in the place of John Aylmer or Elmer, deprived, an. 1554. Rob. Williamson, batch of div. of the same univ. was incorporated on the same day. One John Nowell, doct. of phys. of Leyden, did suppli- [131] cate to be incorporated, 27 June, but whether he had his option, it appears not. An. Dom. 1586.'—28-29 Eliz. Chancellor. The same, with his deputy sir Tho. Bromley, knight, (stiled chancellor also) July 30. Vice-chancellor. Daniel Bernard, D. D. canon of Ch. Ch. nominated by the deputy-chancellor (whose chaplain he was) July 8. Proctors. Will. Watkinson of Ch. Ch. Apr. 14. Giles Tomson of All-s. coll. Apr. 14. Batchelors of 'Music. July 9. John Bull, who had practised the fac: of music for 14 years was then admitted batch, of music.—This per¬ son, who had a most prodigious hand on the organ, and was famous throughout the religious world for his church music, (the words of some of which are 8 extant) had been trained up under an excellent master named Blithman, orga¬ nist of qu. Elizabeth’s chappel, who died much lamented in 1591.9 This Blithman perceiving that he had a natural geny to the faculty, spared neither time nor labour to ad¬ vance it to the utmost. So that in short time he being more than master of it, which he shewed by his most ad¬ mirable compositions, played and sung in many churches beyond the seas, as well as at home, he took occasion to go incognito into France and Germany. At length hearing of a famous musician belonging to a certain cathedral, (at St. Omers, as I have heard) he applied himself as a novice to him to learn something of his faculty, and to see and ad¬ mire his works. This musician, after some discourse had passed between them, conducted Bull to a vestry, or music school joyning to the cathedral, and shew’d to him a lesson or song of forty parts, and then made a vaunting challenge to any person in the world to add one more part to them, supposing it to be so compleat and full, that it was impossi¬ ble for any mortal man to correct, or add to it. Bull there¬ upon desiring the use of ink and rul’d paper, (such as we call musical paper) prayed the musician to lock him up in the said school for 2 or 3 hours ; which being done, not without great disdain by the musician. Bull in that time, or less, added forty more parts to the said lesson or song. The musician thereupon being called in, he viewed it, tried it, and retry’d it. At length he burst out into a great ecstacy, and swore by the great God that he that added those 40 parts, must either be the Devil or Dr. Bull, &c. Whereupon Bull making himself known, the musician fell down and ador’d him. Afterwards continuing there and in those parts for a time, became so much admir’d, that he was 8 See in a book entit. The divine Sendees and Anthems usually sung in the Cathedrals and Collegiate Choires in the Church of England, collected by Jam. Cliford. Lond. 1663. p. 56, 137,187, &c. 9 [John Blithman belonged to Chr. Ch, quire, seems to have been master of the choristers 1564. Tanner.] courted to accept of any place or preferment suitable to his profession, either within the dominions of the emperor, king of France, or Spain. But the tidings of these transac¬ tions coming to the English court, qu. Elizabeth com¬ manded him home. See more of him under the year 1592. John Munday, another eminent musician, now, or after, one of the organists of her majesty’s chappel, was admitted batch, also the same day.—See more of him in 1624. One Will. Munday was also a noted musician, and hath com¬ posed several divine services and anthems, but him I find not to be graduated in this university, or elsewhere. One Benjam. Hamm, a student of music, supplicated to be batch, of that fac. in January; which was granted con¬ ditionally that he compose a choral hymn of eight parts be¬ fore the Passover following. About the same time, he supplicated for the degree of batch, of arts, which was denied. Batchelors of Arts. V Jun. 10. Charles Sonibank of Ch. Ch.—See among the doct. of div. 1607. “ Jun. IS. John Leech of Brasen-nose coll.” Jul. 13. Rich. Middleton of Jesus coll.—This person, who took no other degree in this university, I take to be the same with Rich. Middleton, son of Marmaduke Middle- ton, bishop of St. David, and about this time archdeacon of Cardigan.1 One Rich. Middleton, chaplain to Charles prince of Wales, hath written and published (l) The Key of David. Lond. 1619, in a thick tw. before which 8 is his picture with a ruff, and a great beard.3 (2) The heavenly Progress. Lond. 1617* in tw. (3) The Card and Compass of Life containing many Passages fit for these Times, &c. Lond. 1613, oct. Whether this Rich. Middleton the writer be the same with Rich. Middleton the batch, of arts and archdeacon of Cardigan, I cannot well tell. Quaere. Oct. 11. Rowland Searchfield of St. John’s coll.— He was afterwards bishop of Bristol. 12. Edw. Gee, lately of Mert. now of Line. coll. Oct. 12. Rich. Brett of Line. coll. -Christoph. Sutton of Line. coll. 19. John Budden of Trin. coll. Nov. 9. Alex. Gill, of C. C. coll. The last was the senior of both his names, and afterwards [1323 master of St. Paul’s school. Dec. 14. Sam. Slade.—See among the M. of A. 1593. Dec. 17- John Sanford of Bal. afterwards of Magd. coll. Jan. 27- Franc. Mason.—Afterwards worthily character¬ ized to be Vindex Ecclesice Anglicance. SO. Nich. Fuller of Hart hall. Feb. 15. Lew. Thomas of Brasen-nose coll. -Edw. Breerwood of Brasen-nose coll. John Day of St. Alb. hall, afterwards of Or. coll, was o admitted the same day. 1 [Rich. Middleton, S. T. B. archdeacon of Cardigan, was instituted to the rectory of Eaton in Northamptonshire, A. D. 1628. Loved ay. Ric. Middleton cler. adniiss. ad rect. de stisted com. Essex. 28. Sept. 1619. per translat. Sam. Harsnet ab e’patu Cicestr. ad e’patum Norwic. Kf.nnet.] ? [At the end of this is another tract entitled Goodncs: The blessed Man’s Badge, or God’s Character stampt on Man’s Cimscience, printed in the same year, 1619. This is the substance of two sermons preached before prince Charles by his chaplain, Middleton.] 3 [Wood should have said, that Middleton’s portrait is contained in an engraved title page, without the name of the artist.]
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