Difference between revisions of "Richard Carew 1555-1620"

Latest revision as of 03:22, 25 February 2024

Richard CAREW 1555-1620

Biographical Note

Born at Antony, Cornwall, son of Thomas Carew, landowner; Richard inherited the family estate there in 1564 when his father died. Matriculated at Christ Church, Oxford ca.1566, but did not graduate; also admitted at the Middle Temple. JP 1581, MP for Saltash 1584, for Mitchell 1597. Sheriff of Cornwall 1586. Beyond his work in managing his estates and his wider official duties, he was a scholar and an author, and a member of the Elizabethan Society of Antiquaries; he is best known for his Survey of Cornwall (1602), but also published translations of Tasso's Gerusalemme liberata (Godfrey of Bulloigne, 1594) and Huarte's Examen de ingenios (The Examination of men's wits, 1594).

Books

Carew was a learned and book-loving man; his son left a manuscript including a description of early 17th-century life at Antony, saying that Carew "without a teacher ... learned the Greek, Dutch, French, Spanish and Italian tongues ... He ever delighted in reading ... for if he had none other hindrance, going or riding he would ever have a book and be reading". When Thomas James approached Carew for donations to the new Bodleian Library, he replied with a description of his library, and the difficulties of obtaining books from rural Cornwall: "Manuscripts I have fewe, and those such as have alreadie past the presse: not that I want desire to furnish myself with better store: but my dwelling having confined me to this angle of our worlde, hath ... deprived me of the meanes to get them, I can therefore say only of my bookes (which I use as playfellowes, & not as schoolemasters) ... that they are few and evell: the bulke of them consisting only of those which by the catalogues I could procure from the Frankford-marts". Despite this modest description, we may note that James wrote to Carew because the Earl of Arundel, having seen Carew's library, thought this might be worthwhile. Carew's will has no mention of books; his library would have passed, with the rest of his estate, to his eldest son Richard (d.1643, created a baronet 1641).

Carew's inscription, Middle Temple Library

Characteristic Markings

A copy of L-V La Popeliniere, L'histoire de France, 1581, in the Middle Temple Library has Carew's inscription "Ri Carew of Antony" on the titlepage, with a purchase note at the foot dated 14 March 1585.

Sources

Transcript of Carew's letter to Thomas James in Bodleian Library Quarterly, 5 (1926), 3-4.
Halliday, F. E. Richard Carew of Antony, 1953.
Mendyk, S. "Carew, Richard (1555–1620), antiquary and poet." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 __NOTITLE__
-===[[name::Richard]] [[name::CAREW]] [[date of Birth::1555]]-[[date of Death::1620]]===
+===[[name::Richard]] [[name::CAREW]] [[date of birth::1555]]-[[date of death::1620]]===
 ====Biographical Note====
-Born at [[place of Birth::Antony, Cornwall]], son of [[family::Thomas Carew]], [[occupation::landowner]]; Richard inherited the family estate there in 1564 when his father died.  Matriculated at [[education::Christ Church, Oxford]] ca.1566, but did not graduate; also admitted at [[organisations::the Middle Temple]].  [[occupation::Justice of the Peace|JP]] 1581, [[occupation::MP]] for [[location::Saltash]] 1584, for [[location::Mitchell]] 1597.  [[occupation::Sheriff]] of [[location::Cornwall]] 1586.  Beyond his work in managing his estates and his wider official duties, he was a [[occupation::scholar]] and an [[author::author]], and a member of the [[organisations::Elizabethan Society of Antiquaries]]; he is best known for his [[book Title::''Survey of Cornwall'']] (1602), but also published [[translator::translations]] of [[author::Tasso]]'s [[book Title::''Gerusalemme liberata'']] ([[book Title::''Godfrey of Bulloigne'']], [[date of Publication::1594]]) and [[author::Huarte]]'s [[book Title::''Examen de ingenios'']] ([[book Title::''The Examination of men's wits'']], [[date of Publication::1594]]).
+Born at [[place of birth::Antony, Cornwall]], son of [[family::Thomas Carew]], landowner; Richard inherited the family estate there in 1564 when his father died.  Matriculated at [[education::Christ Church, Oxford]] ca.1566, but did not graduate; also admitted at the [[organisations::Middle Temple]].  [[occupation::JP]] 1581, [[occupation::MP]] for [[location::Saltash]] 1584, for [[location::Mitchell]] 1597.  [[occupation::Sheriff]] of [[location::Cornwall]] 1586.  Beyond his work in managing his estates and his wider official duties, he was a [[occupation::scholar]] and an author, and a member of the Elizabethan [[organisations::Society of Antiquaries]]; he is best known for his [[book title ::''Survey of Cornwall'']] (1602), but also published [[translator::translations]] of Tasso's [[book title ::''Gerusalemme liberata'']] ([[book title ::''Godfrey of Bulloigne'']], [[date of publication::1594]]) and Huarte's [[book title ::''Examen de ingenios'']] ([[book title ::''The Examination of men's wits'']], [[date of publication::1594]]).
 ====Books====
-Carew was a learned and book-loving man; his [[family::son]] left a [[format::manuscript]] including a description of early 17th-century life at [[location::Antony]], saying that Carew "without a teacher ... learned the [[language::Greek]], [[language::Dutch]], [[language::French]], [[language::Spanish]] and [[language::Italian]] tongues ... He ever delighted in reading ... for if he had none other hindrance, going or riding he would ever have a book and be reading".  When [[associates::Thomas James]] approached Carew for donations to the new [[organisations::the Bodleian Library|Bodleian Library]], he replied with a description of his library, and the difficulties of obtaining books from rural [[location::Cornwall]]: "[[format::manuscript|Manuscripts]] I have fewe, and those such as have alreadie past the presse: not that I want desire to furnish myself with better store: but my dwelling having confined me to this angle of our worlde, hath ... deprived me of the meanes to get them,  I can therefore say only of my bookes (which I use as playfellowes, & not as schoolemasters) ... that they are few and evell: the bulke of them consisting only of those which by the catalogues I could procure from the Frankford-marts".  Despite this modest description, we may note that [[associates::Thomas James|James]] wrote to Carew because [[associates::the Earl of Arundel]], having seen Carew's library, thought this might be worthwhile.  Carew's will has no mention of books; his library would have passed, with the rest of his estate, to his eldest [[subsequent owner::son]] [[family::Richard Carew|Richard]] (d.[[date of Death::1643]], created a [[personal Title::baronet]] 1641).
+Carew was a learned and book-loving man; his [[family::son]] left a [[format::manuscript]] including a description of early 17th-century life at [[location::Antony]], saying that Carew "without a teacher ... learned the [[language::Greek]], [[language::Dutch]], [[language::French]], [[language::Spanish]] and [[language::Italian]] tongues ... He ever delighted in reading ... for if he had none other hindrance, going or riding he would ever have a book and be reading".  When [[associates::Thomas James]] approached Carew for donations to the new [[organisations::Bodleian Library]], he replied with a description of his library, and the difficulties of obtaining books from rural [[location::Cornwall]]: "[[format::manuscript|Manuscripts]] I have fewe, and those such as have alreadie past the presse: not that I want desire to furnish myself with better store: but my dwelling having confined me to this angle of our worlde, hath ... deprived me of the meanes to get them,  I can therefore say only of my bookes (which I use as playfellowes, & not as schoolemasters) ... that they are few and evell: the bulke of them consisting only of those which by the catalogues I could procure from the Frankford-marts".  Despite this modest description, we may note that [[associates::Thomas James|James]] wrote to Carew because [[associates::the Earl of Arundel]], having seen Carew's library, thought this might be worthwhile.  Carew's will has no mention of books; his library would have passed, with the rest of his estate, to his eldest [[subsequent owner::son]] [[family::Richard Carew|Richard]] (d.1643, created a baronet 1641).
+[[file:CarewRichard.jpg|thumb|886px|Carew's inscription, Middle Temple Library]]
 ====Characteristic Markings====
-None of Carew's books have been traced.
+A copy of L-V La Popeliniere, ''L'histoire de France'', 1581, in the Middle Temple Library has Carew's inscription "Ri Carew of Antony" on the titlepage, with a purchase note at the foot dated 14 March 1585.
 ====Sources====
@@ Line 21: / Line 21: @@
 [[Category:Gentry]]
 [[Category:Judges and Lawyers]]
+[[Category:All Owners]]