Matthew Smallwood 1615?-1683

Matthew SMALLWOOD 1615?-1683

Biographical Note

Son of James Smallwood, of Middlewicke, Cheshire. BA Brasenose College, Oxford 1634, MA 1642, DD 1660. Chaplain to Charles II, Rector of St Martin Orgar, London and canon of St Paul’s, 1660; Rector of Halsall, Lancashire 1661, of Gawsworth, Cheshire 1662. Dean of Lichfield from 1671 until his death. Described as a capable organiser, who took over the leadership of the restoration work in Lichfield Cathedral which was begun by John Hacket (d.1671); he was closely involved with the installation of a new carved reredos in the Cathedral in the 1670s.

Books

Smallwood’s library was auctioned in London, 2 May 1684. The sale catalogue includes 1644 lots, plus 31 bound volumes of tracts and sermons, and 7 bundles of stitched pamphlets, divided between Latin theology (603), Latin miscellaneous (including philology, history and classics) 399, English 642. The English books were largely theological in content, but included some in history, literature and gardening. There were 4 15th-century books, and 115 16th-century ones (i.e. 16th-century books comprised ca.7% of the whole).

Characteristic Markings

None of Smallwood’s books have been identified.

Sources

• Catalogus librorum … Matth. Smallwood, 1684 (ESTC R13018).
• Victoria County History - Staffordshire.
• Venn, J. & J. A. Alumni Cantabrigienses. Cambridge, 1922.