William Nicholls
Encyclopedia
William Nicholls was an English clergyman and theologian, known as an author on the Book of Common Prayer
.
. He was educated at St Paul's School under Thomas Gale
, and went up with an exhibition
to Magdalen Hall, Oxford, where he matriculated as a commoner on 26 March 1680. He later migrated to Wadham College, and graduated B.A. on 27 November 1683. On 6 October 1684 he was chosen a probationary fellow of Merton College, and proceeded M.A. 19 June 1688, B.D. 2 July 1692, and D.D. 29 November 1695.
Having taken holy orders about 1688, he became chaplain to Ralph Montagu
, and in September 1691 rector of Selsey
, near Chichester
. He was also rector of Bushey
, Hertfordshire
, from 1691 to 1693, and in 1707 a canon of Chichester.
He suffered from poverty in later life. He was buried in the centre aisle of St Swithin's Church in the City of London
.
's output.
Nicholls's major work was the Comment on the Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, London, 1710, with a Supplement published separately in 1711. This book was published by subscription, and dedicated to Queen Anne. He did it unassisted and it cost him his health.
Another of Nicholls's publications, the Defensio Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ, London, 12mo, 1707 and 1708, was written and published in Latin. An English translation by the author appeared in 1715. The book was meant to attract attention of foreigners to the formularies of the English church, and Latin copies were sent to the King of Prussia
and to scholars on the continent. Correspondence resulted including letters from Daniel Jablonski, Benedict Pictet
, Jean le Clerc
, Johann Jacob Wettstein and others. Nicholls's views were contested and answered by James Peirce
in Vindication of the Dissenters (London, 1718).
Nicholls's other works included:
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
.
Life
He was the son of John Nicholls of Donington, now Dunton, BuckinghamshireDunton, Buckinghamshire
Dunton is a village and is also a civil parish within Aylesbury Vale district in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the Aylesbury Vale, about eight miles from Aylesbury and six miles from Winslow....
. He was educated at St Paul's School under Thomas Gale
Thomas Gale
Thomas Gale was an English classical scholar, antiquarian and cleric.-Life:He was born at Scruton, Yorkshire...
, and went up with an exhibition
Exhibition (scholarship)
-United Kingdom and Ireland:At the universities of Dublin, Oxford and Cambridge, and at Westminster School, Eton College and Winchester College, and various other UK educational establishments, an exhibition is a financial award or grant to an individual student, normally on grounds of merit. The...
to Magdalen Hall, Oxford, where he matriculated as a commoner on 26 March 1680. He later migrated to Wadham College, and graduated B.A. on 27 November 1683. On 6 October 1684 he was chosen a probationary fellow of Merton College, and proceeded M.A. 19 June 1688, B.D. 2 July 1692, and D.D. 29 November 1695.
Having taken holy orders about 1688, he became chaplain to Ralph Montagu
Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu
Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu was an English courtier and diplomat.-Life:He was the second son of Edward Montagu, 2nd Baron Montagu of Boughton and Anne Winwood, daughter of the Secretary of State Ralph Winwood...
, and in September 1691 rector of Selsey
Selsey
Selsey is a seaside town and civil parish, about seven miles south of Chichester, in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. Selsey lies at the southernmost point of the Manhood Peninsula, almost cut off from mainland Sussex by the sea...
, near Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
. He was also rector of Bushey
Bushey
Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. Bushey Heath is situated to the south east of Bushey on the boundary with the London Borough of Harrow.-History:...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, from 1691 to 1693, and in 1707 a canon of Chichester.
He suffered from poverty in later life. He was buried in the centre aisle of St Swithin's Church in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
Works
Much of his life was spent in literary work. In 1711 he was editing John SeldenJohn Selden
John Selden was an English jurist and a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law...
's output.
Nicholls's major work was the Comment on the Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, London, 1710, with a Supplement published separately in 1711. This book was published by subscription, and dedicated to Queen Anne. He did it unassisted and it cost him his health.
Another of Nicholls's publications, the Defensio Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ, London, 12mo, 1707 and 1708, was written and published in Latin. An English translation by the author appeared in 1715. The book was meant to attract attention of foreigners to the formularies of the English church, and Latin copies were sent to the King of Prussia
King of Prussia
King of Prussia may refer to:* A ruler of the former German state of Prussia**List of rulers of Prussia* Place names** King of Prussia, Pennsylvania* Shopping Centers** King of Prussia Mall...
and to scholars on the continent. Correspondence resulted including letters from Daniel Jablonski, Benedict Pictet
Benedict Pictet
-Life:He was born at Geneva on 30 May 1655. After receiving a university education there, he made an extensive tour of Europe. He then assumed pastoral duties at Geneva, and in 1686 was appointed professor of theology. He there on 10 June 1724.-Works:...
, Jean le Clerc
Jean Leclerc (theologian)
Jean Le Clerc, also Johannes Clericus was a Swiss theologian and biblical scholar. He was famous for promoting exegesis, or critical interpretation of the Bible, and was a radical of his age...
, Johann Jacob Wettstein and others. Nicholls's views were contested and answered by James Peirce
James Peirce
James Peirce was an English dissenting minister, the catalyst for the Salter's Hall controversy.-Early life:The son of John Peirce, he was born at Wapping about 1674. His parents, who were in easy circumstances, were members of the congregational church at Stepney, under Matthew Mead...
in Vindication of the Dissenters (London, 1718).
Nicholls's other works included:
- ‘An Answer to an Heretical Book, called the Naked Gospel,’ 1691, against Arthur BuryArthur BuryArthur Bury, D.D. was an English college head and Anglican theologian of controversial views. His 1690 antitrinitarian work, The Naked Gospel, first published anonymously, was commanded to be burnt at Oxford, and, in a complex sequence of events involving legal action, Bury lost his position as...
. Printed with ‘A Short History of Socinianism.’ - ‘A Practical Essay on the Contempt of the World,’ inscribed to his schoolfellow, Sir John Trevor, 1694.
- ‘A Conference with a Theist,’ in five parts, 1696 (3rd edit., enlarged to 2 vols., in 1723).
- ‘The Duty of Inferiours towards their Superiours, in five Practical Discourses,’ 1701.
- ‘A Treatise of Consolation to Parents for the Death of their Children’ (on the occasion of the Duke of Gloucester's death), 1701.
- ‘The Religion of a Prince’ (on the relinquishing of tenths and first-fruits by Queen Anne), 1704.
- ‘A Paraphrase on the Common Prayer …’, 1708.
- ‘Historiæ Sacræ Libri vii., opus ex Antonii Socceii Sabellici Eneadibus concinnatum,’ 1710, and 1711.
- ‘A Commentary on the first fifteen and part of the sixteenth Articles of the Church of England,’ 1712.
- ‘A Defence of the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England’ (a translation of the ‘Defensio,’ mentioned above), 1715. These last two were posthumously published.