William Buckmaster d.1546

William BUCKMASTER d.1546

Biographical Note

Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge and MA 1517, BTh 1525, DTh 1528, when he was appointed Lady Margaret preacher; he was Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge in 1529, and 1538. He became closely involved in resolving Henry VIII's issues over his divorce from Katherine of Aragon, as the head of a Cambridge commission on the matter; he is thought to have been uncomfortable with this, but produced satisfactory answers for the King. He was given various ecclesiastical offices, including a prebend at St Paul's Cathedral in 1541.

Books

Buckmaster's probate inventory includes 99 titles, in 114 volumes, valued at ca.£6 13s 9d (from a total estate valued at ca.£21 17s); the inventory may be incomplete. The books are mostly in Latin, with some Greek, and include much theology alongside some classics, philosophy, and other subjects. His furnishings included a bookpress with 5 shelves, and a press for books over the door. The full inventory is edited as Leedham-Green no.29 (see full citation below).

Sources

• Leedham-Green, E. S., Books in Cambridge inventories, Cambridge, 1986, no.29/pp.78-81.
• Wright, Stephen. "Buckmaster, William (d. 1546), scholar." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.