Richard James (minister)
Encyclopedia
Richard James was an English scholar, poet, and the first librarian of the Cotton library
.
, third son of Andrew James , by his wife Dorothy, daughter of Philip Poore of Durrington
, Wiltshire
. Thomas James
was his uncle. Richard was educated at Newport grammar school, and matriculated as a commoner at Exeter College, Oxford
, on 6 May 1608. On 23 September of the same year he migrated to Corpus Christi College
, of which he had been elected scholar, and graduated there B.A. 12 October 1611 and M.A. 24 January 1615. On 30 September 1615 he was elected probationary fellow of his college, and on 7 July 1624 graduated B.D.
. He went to Muscovy in 1618 as chaplain to Sir Dudley Digges. His notes about that journey (found in 1840s in Bodleian Library
) included the first Russian-English Dictionary, remarks about Russian culture and six Russian folksongs about the Time of Troubles
, making his papers an important source about Russian casual life and songs of the period.
In November and December 1618 he was at Breslau. In 1622 he was in Newfoundland. James had returned to Oxford by January 1623.
in the examination of the Arundel marbles
, and when Selden published his Marmora Arundeliana in 1628 he acknowledged in his preface the assistance which he had received from James. James had already been introduced to Sir Robert Bruce Cotton; he soon became Cotton's librarian, and the lists of contents prefixed to many manuscripts in the Cottonian collection are in James's handwriting.
In July 1629 he lent to Oliver St John
the manuscript tract on the bridling of parliaments which was written in 1612 by Sir Robert Dudley, titular duke of Northumberland
. The tract was secretly circulated by St. John among the parliamentary leaders; Charles I
and his ministers were roused, and James, with Cotton and others, was imprisoned by order of the privy council in the autumn of 1629. He was probably set free, with the other defendants, on the birth of the Prince of Wales
, 29 May 1630.
Whilst imprisoned in the Tower of London
James wrote a letter pleading for his case to be reconsidered by Charles I of England
. In the letter, James protests the innocence of both Sir Robert Bruce Cotton and himself, claiming that neither one of them were responsible for the pamphlet coming into the possession of Oliver St John
.
On 22 October 1629 James was presented to the sinecure living of Little Mongeham
, Kent
, the only church preferment which he ever held. After Sir Robert Cotton's death in 1631 James remained in the service of his son, Sir Thomas, at whose house in Westminster he died early in December 1638 of a quartan fever. He was buried in St. Margaret's Church, Westminster, on 8 December; the register describes him as 'Mr. Richard James, that most famous antiquary.' James was unmarried. Some of his early poems are addressed to a lady, whom he styles Albina, afterwards the wife of Mr. Philip Wodehouse.
He had a wide circle of scholarly friends. They included Sir Kenelm Digby, Sir John Eliot (with whom he corresponded during his imprisonment, and whom he helped in preparing his treatises De Jure Majestatis and Monarchy of Man), Sir Henry Spelman, Ben Jonson
(to whom he addressed a poem on his Staple of Niews first presented), Sebastian Benefield
, Thomas Jackson
, Brian Twine, and Thomas Greaves
.
series, edited by Thomas Corser
, with notes and an introduction in which many of James's minor poems are reprinted, together with extracts from some of his prose works. In 1880 A. B. Grosart published The Poems of Richard James (only one hundred copies printed), with a preface, in which he adds a little to Corser's account. This volume contains the Iter Lancastrense, The Muses Dirge, the edition of Hoccleve's 'Oldcastle,' the minor English and Latin poems collected from James's published works and MSS. James 13 and 35, and the Reasons concerning the unlawfulness of Attempts on the Lives of Great Personages. James left a number of manuscripts, which at his death passed into the possession of Thomas Greaves, with whose library they were acquired in 1676 for the Bodleian.
Cotton library
The Cotton or Cottonian library was collected privately by Sir Robert Bruce Cotton M.P. , an antiquarian and bibliophile, and was the basis of the British Library...
.
Early life
He was born in Newport, Isle of WightNewport, Isle of Wight
Newport is a civil parish and a county town of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England. Newport has a population of 23,957 according to the 2001 census...
, third son of Andrew James , by his wife Dorothy, daughter of Philip Poore of Durrington
Durrington
-United Kingdom:*Durrington, West Sussex*Durrington, Wiltshire*Durrington Walls, a prehistoric henge monument*Durrington-on-Sea railway station...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. Thomas James
Thomas James
Thomas James was an English librarian, first librarian of the Bodleian Library, Oxford.James became a fellow of New College, Oxford in 1593...
was his uncle. Richard was educated at Newport grammar school, and matriculated as a commoner at Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
, on 6 May 1608. On 23 September of the same year he migrated to Corpus Christi College
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
, of which he had been elected scholar, and graduated there B.A. 12 October 1611 and M.A. 24 January 1615. On 30 September 1615 he was elected probationary fellow of his college, and on 7 July 1624 graduated B.D.
Traveller
After taking holy orders James set out on a long series of travels. Starting in Wales and Scotland, they extended to Shetland and GreenlandGreenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. He went to Muscovy in 1618 as chaplain to Sir Dudley Digges. His notes about that journey (found in 1840s in 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...
) included the first Russian-English Dictionary, remarks about Russian culture and six Russian folksongs about the Time of Troubles
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last Russian Tsar of the Rurik Dynasty, Feodor Ivanovich, in 1598, and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. In 1601-1603, Russia suffered a famine that killed one-third...
, making his papers an important source about Russian casual life and songs of the period.
In November and December 1618 he was at Breslau. In 1622 he was in Newfoundland. James had returned to Oxford by January 1623.
Later life
In the latter part of 1624 James was employed with John SeldenJohn Selden
John Selden was an English jurist and a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law...
in the examination of the Arundel marbles
Arundel marbles
The Arundelian Marbles are a collection of Greek marbles collected by Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel in the early seventeenth century, the first such comprehensive collection of its kind in England...
, and when Selden published his Marmora Arundeliana in 1628 he acknowledged in his preface the assistance which he had received from James. James had already been introduced to Sir Robert Bruce Cotton; he soon became Cotton's librarian, and the lists of contents prefixed to many manuscripts in the Cottonian collection are in James's handwriting.
In July 1629 he lent to Oliver St John
Oliver St John
Sir Oliver St John , was an English judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War.- Early life :...
the manuscript tract on the bridling of parliaments which was written in 1612 by Sir Robert Dudley, titular duke of Northumberland
Robert Dudley, styled Earl of Warwick
Sir Robert Dudley was an English explorer and cartographer. In 1594, he led an expedition to the West Indies, of which he wrote an account. The illegitimate son of Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, he inherited the bulk of the Earl's estate in accordance with his father's will, including...
. The tract was secretly circulated by St. John among the parliamentary leaders; Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
and his ministers were roused, and James, with Cotton and others, was imprisoned by order of the privy council in the autumn of 1629. He was probably set free, with the other defendants, on the birth of the Prince of Wales
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
, 29 May 1630.
Whilst imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
James wrote a letter pleading for his case to be reconsidered by Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
. In the letter, James protests the innocence of both Sir Robert Bruce Cotton and himself, claiming that neither one of them were responsible for the pamphlet coming into the possession of Oliver St John
Oliver St John
Sir Oliver St John , was an English judge and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653. He supported the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War.- Early life :...
.
On 22 October 1629 James was presented to the sinecure living of Little Mongeham
Little Mongeham
Little Mongeham is a small hamlet near Dover in Kent, southeast England. The main buildings are Little Mongeham House and Manor Farm.The scholar Richard James held the living of Little Mongeham from 1629. The White Cliffs Country Trail runs through the middle of the village.-External links:...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, the only church preferment which he ever held. After Sir Robert Cotton's death in 1631 James remained in the service of his son, Sir Thomas, at whose house in Westminster he died early in December 1638 of a quartan fever. He was buried in St. Margaret's Church, Westminster, on 8 December; the register describes him as 'Mr. Richard James, that most famous antiquary.' James was unmarried. Some of his early poems are addressed to a lady, whom he styles Albina, afterwards the wife of Mr. Philip Wodehouse.
He had a wide circle of scholarly friends. They included Sir Kenelm Digby, Sir John Eliot (with whom he corresponded during his imprisonment, and whom he helped in preparing his treatises De Jure Majestatis and Monarchy of Man), Sir Henry Spelman, Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
(to whom he addressed a poem on his Staple of Niews first presented), Sebastian Benefield
Sebastian Benefield
-Life:He was a native of Prestbury, Gloucestershire, where he was born on 12 August 1559. He was admitted scholar of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, on 30 August 1586. He is found probationer-fellow of the same college 16 April 1590. Shortly afterwards he took his degrees of B.A. and M.A., and,...
, Thomas Jackson
Thomas Jackson (theologian)
Thomas Jackson was an English theologian, and President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. Originally a Calvinist, he became in later life an Arminian.-Life:...
, Brian Twine, and Thomas Greaves
Thomas Greaves (orientalist)
Thomas Greaves was an English orientalist, a contributor to the London Polyglot of Brian Walton.-Life:He was a son of the Rev. John Greaves of Colemore, Hampshire, and brother of John Greaves, Nicholas Greaves and of Sir Edward Greaves...
.
Works
In 1636 he wrote Iter Lancastrense, a poem later printed in the 1845 volume of the same name, as part of the Chetham SocietyChetham Society
The Chetham Society was founded in Manchester, England, in 1843, by James Crossley, a lawyer, and the Reverend Thomas Corser. The Society's stated aim is to maintain the "Historical and Literary Connected with the Palatine Counties of Lancaster and Chester"...
series, edited by Thomas Corser
Thomas Corser
Thomas Corser was a British literary scholar and Church of England clergyman. He was the editor of Collectanea Anglo-Poetica.-Life:...
, with notes and an introduction in which many of James's minor poems are reprinted, together with extracts from some of his prose works. In 1880 A. B. Grosart published The Poems of Richard James (only one hundred copies printed), with a preface, in which he adds a little to Corser's account. This volume contains the Iter Lancastrense, The Muses Dirge, the edition of Hoccleve's 'Oldcastle,' the minor English and Latin poems collected from James's published works and MSS. James 13 and 35, and the Reasons concerning the unlawfulness of Attempts on the Lives of Great Personages. James left a number of manuscripts, which at his death passed into the possession of Thomas Greaves, with whose library they were acquired in 1676 for the Bodleian.