A letter of attorney is a written authority from one person empowering another to transact business for him.
Middleton Cheney is the largest village in Northamptonshire.Edmund Scambler was Canon of the 6th Prebendary, Westminster (1560-1561), Prebendary of Wistow, Yorkshire (1559-1564), Bishop of Peterborough (1561-1585) and Bishop of Norwich (1585-1594). He died in 1594.
The Exchequer was responsible for receiving and dispersing the public revenue. The lower Exchequer, or receipt, closely connected with the permanent Treasury, was an office for the receipt and payment of money. The upper Exchequer was a court sitting twice a year to regulate accounts. The business of the ancient Exchequer was mainly financial, though some judicial business connected with accounts was also conducted. In time the upper Exchequer developed into the judicial system, while the lower Exchequer became the Treasury.
William Noy (or Noye) was born in 1577. He was educated at Exeter College, Oxford University, and became a barrister at Lincoln's Inn in 1602. Noy represented several boroughs in Cornwall from 1604, and led an attack on monopolies in 1621. He was made Attorney-General for King Charles I in 1631, and incurred popular odium due to the revival of the forest laws, the soap monopoly, and the writ of ship money. Noy died in 1634.
Kyng Alisaunder is a long and sophisticated thirteenth century romance poem, written in Middle English, about the life of Alexander the Great.
In Scotland, poor relief was organised using a system of voluntary contributions distributed under the direction of the minister and elders of the Kirk and, from 1752, more strongly by the direction of the landowners, who were the principal ratepayers. The able-bodied poor had no right to statutory relief as in England. A 'stent' was the rate levied on property owners.
The Escalade of Geneva took place on 11-12 December 1602, when the soldiers of Duke Charles Emmanuel of Savoy attempted a siege of the city, which the Duke wanted as the capital of his aspiring kingdom. The citizens defended their city and drove off the attackers, thus preserving the independence of Geneva. Several legends have grown up around this historical event, and there is an annual festival on this date.
The missal is a book which contains the prayers said by the priest at the altar as well as all that is officially read or sung in connection with the offering of the holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the ecclesiastical year.
An antiphoner is a liturgical book containing antiphons, the sung portions of the Divine office, both texts and notation. Such books were often of a large format, to be used by a choir.
The Victoria County History of Surrey, Vol.III, dates the grant of the reputed manor of Little Ashtead by Newdegate to Cole as 1604.
Aside from the poor rate, which was set by the overseers of the poor, much of the money for local poor relief came from various charities. The parish of Lutton was in the Thrapston Union of Northamptonshire for Poor Law administration.
The East India Company (formally called the Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies (1600-1708) and the United Company of Merchants of England Trading to the East Indies (1708-1873)), was an English company formed for the exploitation of the spice trade in East and Southeast Asia and India. It was incorporated by Royal Charter in December 1600.
Quincampoix is a parish in France, in the Rouen area, founded in 1215.
During the War of the Spanish Succession (1702-1713), Britain occupied Gibraltar (1704) and Minorca (1708). Both were officially ceded to Britain in the Treaty of Utrecht (1713) which ended the war.
Frederick VI (1768-1839) was King of Denmark (1808-39) and Norway (1808-14). He was responsible for many liberal reforms in both countries, and had a peaceful and prosperous reign until the Napoleonic Wars, when, despite Danish neutrality, its opposition to the British ruling on neutral shipping resulted in an English attack on the Danish fleet (Battle of Copenhagen) in 1801. Again, in 1807, England attacked neutral Denmark and bombarded Copenhagen. Frederick thereupon allied himself with Napoleon I and was punished at the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) by the loss of Norway to Sweden.
Herbert Somerton Foxwell (1849-1936) was a dedicated book-collector and bibliophile, who formed a large collection of economic books printed before 1848. In 1901, Foxwell sold his library to the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths (Goldsmith's Company) for £10, 000 in 1901. At that time it contained about 30,000 books. The Company also generously provided Foxwell with a series the wherewithal to make further acquisitions for addition to the Library, which was given to the University of London in 1903.
Seneca (4 BC-65 AD) was a Roman advocate and senator, who acted as tutor and, following his accession, political advisor to the Roman emperor Nero. He was implicated in a conspiracy and forced to commit suicide. His writings included a series of Moral Essays, which included 'De Beneficiis' ('On Benefits'), in which he discussed favours and the nature of gratitude and ingratitude.
St Jerome (c340-420) wrote a large number of theological works. Amongst his earliest were his revisions of the Latin version of the New Testament, including the Epistles of St Paul in 385.
The Clementinae is a collection of canon law, promulgated (1317) by John XXII, and drawn mostly from the constitutions of Clement V at the Council of Vienne.
The Missal is a liturgical book which contains the prayers said by the priest at the altar as well as all that is officially read or sung in connection with the offering of the holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the ecclesiastical year.
By 1811, relations between Russia and France were deteriorating. In 1805, Alexander I, Tsar of Russia, had joined the coalition against Napoleon I. Defeats at Austerlitz and Friedland, however, led to a Russian-French Alliance agreed by the Treaty of Tilsot in 1807. Relations were soured by Alexander's liberal interpretation of Napoleon's Continental System, Russian fears concerning the possible unification of Poland, and quarrels over the independence of Prussia which led to French troops close to the Russian border. In 1811, Napoleon broke the Treaty of Tilsot by annexing Oldenburg, and the alliance was broken. Napoleon invaded Russia the next year, but was defeated.
For a reconstruction of this interview, see A.Vandal, Napoleon et Alexandre I (Paris, 1896), vol.III, c.6, and vol.III, p.212 n.1 for the sources on which he bases his account.
Jean Baptiste Jules Bernadotte (1763-1844) was a French soldier who rose through the ranks to serve under Napoleon in the Italian Campaign (1796-1797). He was French Ambassador at Vienna (1798) and Minister of War (1799), and played a prominent part in the victory of Austerlitz in 1805. Napoleon created him Marshal of the Empire (1804) and Prince of Ponte Corvo (1806). In 1809, Gustavus IV of Sweden abdicated and was succeeded by his aged and childless uncle Charles XIII. In the search for a successor, the Swedes approached Bernadotte, who, with the support of Napoleon, was elected crown prince and adopted (1810) by Charles XIII as Charles John. Taking control of the government, Charles John, who desired the acquisition of Norway from Denmark, threw in his lot with England and Russia against France and Denmark, and played an important part in the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig (1813). In 1814, the Danes ceded Norway in the Treaty of Kiel. Charles John succeeded to a joint kingdom in 1818 as Charles XIV.
A sequentiary is a book, or portion, of a Gradual or Troper containing sequences (extended melodies) sung by a soloist between the Alleluia and the Gospel lesson at Mass.
This manuscript was probably prepared in connection with the proceedings for the Union of 1707. The Act of Union was a treaty (1 May 1707) that effected the union of England and Scotland under the name of Great Britain.
The Exchequer was responsible for receiving and dispersing the public revenue. The lower Exchequer, or receipt, closely connected with the permanent Treasury, was an office for the receipt and payment of money. The upper Exchequer was a court sitting twice a year to regulate accounts.
For a reference to Carpenter as messenger in 1577, see Cal.S.P.Dom. 1547-1580, 569.
The term 'customs' applied to customary payments or dues of any kind, regal, episcopal or ecclesiastical until it became restricted to duties payable to the King upon export or import of certain articles of commerce. A Board of Customs for England and Wales was created in 1671.
Son of the deposed King James II of England, James Edward Francis Stuart made several abortive attempts to regain the English throne. In 1715 John Erskine, 6th Earl of Mar, raised a Jacobite rebellion in Scotland, and the Pretender landed at Peterhead, Aberdeen, on 22 Dec 1715. By 10 Feb 1716, the uprising had collapsed and James had returned to France.
The North Midland Railway to Masborough opened on 11 May 1840.
In 1724-1725, the British government attempted to impose a new and debased currency of copper halfpence and farthings on Ireland. The "Drapier's Letters" (1724-1725) by Johnathan Swift attacked this scheme, and were part of a successful campaign against it.
William Walker: born in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, 1824; adventurer and revolutionary leader; migrated to California, 1850; sailed from San Francisco with a small force, 1853; after landing at La Paz, proclaimed Lower California and Sonora an independent republic; forced back to the USA by lack of supplies and Mexican resistance, 1854; sailed to Nicaragua at the invitation of a revolutionary faction, 1855; by the end of the year his military successes made him virtual master of Nicaragua, then a key transport link between Atlantic and Pacific ocean shipping; President of Nicaragua, 1856-1857; maintained himself against a coalition of Central American states until 1 May 1857; in order to avoid capture, surrendered to the US Navy and returned to the USA; led another foray but was arrested and returned to the USA as a prisoner on parole; went to Central America for a third time, 1860; landed in Honduras and was taken prisoner by the British Navy; turned over to the Honduran authorities and executed at Trujillo, Honduras, 1860.
Sir Samuel Bentham: born, 1757; youngest son of Jeremiah Bentham, an attorney, and brother of the philosopher Jeremy Bentham; educated at Westminster; aged fourteen, apprenticed to the master-shipwright of Woolwich Dockyard; lived in France, 1775; invited to accompany the Bienfaisanhim on the summer cruise of the Channel fleet, 1778; witnessed the battle of Ushant; suggested improvements in steering gear and gun fittings; travelled in order to study the shipbuilding and naval economy of foreign powers, arriving in St Petersburg, Russia, 1780; travelled over much of Russia, from Archangel to the Crimea, and through Siberia to the frontier of China, examining mines and methods of working metals; on his return to St Petersburg presented a report to the Empress, 1782; declined a commissionership in the British navy, because his prospects in Russia seemed more advantageous, 1783; accepted Potemkin's offer to send him to Cherson as lieutenant-colonel; settled at Kritchev, where the prince hoped to establish a shipbuilding yard; his military rank was made substantive and he was appointed commander of a battalion, 1784; owing to the limited number of officers at his disposal, introduced the plan of central observation, with workshops radiating from his own office, a scheme of which his brother Jeremy's 'Panopticon' was a modification; ordered to Cherson to direct the equipment of a flotilla against the Turks, 1787; Bentham's innovations allowed the fittings of recoilless guns of larger calibre than was previously thought possible for small craft, and were instrumental in defeating the Turks, 1788; was rewarded with the military cross of St George and the rank of brigadier-general; appointed to a command in Siberia, where he developed navigation of the rivers and promoted further exploration and trade with China; revisited England, 1791; on his return, spent the remainder of his career as Inspector-General of Navy Works, and later as one of the Commissioners of the Navy, urging and introducing improvements in machinery, equipment and administration of navy dockyards; pensioned off, 1812; moved to France, 1814; returned to England, 1827; during his retirement, prepared papers on professional subjects and continued correspondence with several navy departments until his death, 1831.
Robert Lindsay: born, possibly in 1500, at Pitscottie in the parish of Ceres, Fifeshire; Scottish historian; a cadet of the principal family of Lindsays, Earls of Crawford, and probably a descendant of Patrick, fourth Lord Lindsay of the Byres; according to the `Privy Seal Register', received a grant of escheat, 1552; a service in the Douglas charter-chest proves that he was alive in 1562; probably died c1565; his History includes the period of Scottish history, from the death of James I to that of James III, about which very little is known; its preface states the author's intention of continuing what had been left unwritten by Hector Boece and John Bellenden, the period after James I; the History includes narrative passages, but also other brief entries, and contains inaccuracies and confusion as to dates; Pitscottie's History was first published by the printer Robert Freebairn, 1728, and again in 1749 and 1778, and in 1814 (2 volumes) by Graham Dalyell; the History was used as a source by Sir Walter Scott and other writers.
Hector Boece (or Boethius): born at Dundee, Scotland, c1465; historian and humanist; educated at Dundee and the University of Paris; a friend of Desiderius Erasmus; chief adviser to William Elphinstone, bishop of Aberdeen, in the foundation of the University of Aberdeen (King's College, Aberdeen); first Principal of the University; lectured on divinity; received a pension from the Scottish court, 1527-1534; a canon of Aberdeen; vicar of Tullynessle; later rector of Tyrie; author of the Latin history Scotorum historiae a prima gentis origine (The History and Chronicles of Scotland), 1527; the work, based on legendary sources, glorified the Scottish nation; the History had wide currency abroad in a French translation; Boece died, 1536.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: born in 1090, probably at Fontaine-les-Dijon, near Dijon, Burgundy; monk and mystic; founder and abbot of the abbey of Clairvaux; among the most influential churchmen of his time; died at Clairvaux, Champagne, 1153; canonized, 1174.
John Nider (Johannes Nieder): born in Swabia, 1380; entered the Order of Preachers at Colmar; sent to Vienna for philosophical studies; finished his studies and was ordained at Cologne; active at the Council of Constance; returned to Vienna and taught as Master of Theology, 1425; prior of the Dominican convent at Nuremberg, 1427; served successively as socius to his master general and vicar of the reformed convents of the German province, in which capacity he maintained an earlier reputation as a reformer; prior of the convent of strict observance at Basle, 1431; became identified with the Council of Basle as theologian and legate; made embassies to the Hussites at the command of Cardinal Julian; as legate of the Council, succeeded in pacifying the Bohemians; travelled to Ratisbon to effect further reconciliation with them, 1434; proceeded to Vienna to continue reforming the convents; in dicussions following the dissolution of the Couneil of Basle joined the party in favour of continuing the Council in Germany, but abandoned it when the Pope remained firmly opposed; resumed his theological lectures at Vienna, 1436; twice elected dean of the University; author of various treatises, including (in German) the 'Goldene Harfen' (24 Golden Harps), based on the Collations of Cassianus; died at Colmar, 1438.
From the charterhouse 'zu Yttingen' (Ittingen, Thurgau, Switzerland).
Written in southern Germany for Dominican use.
The Franciscan order, the largest religious order in the Roman Catholic church, was founded in the early 13th century by St Francis of Assisi (1181/82-1226), and comprises three orders: the First Order (priests and lay brothers who have sworn to lead a life of prayer, preaching, and penance), divided into three independent branches, the Friars Minor, the Friars Minor Conventual, and the Friars Minor Capuchin; the Second Order (cloistered nuns who belong to the Order of St Clare, known as Poor Clares); and the Third Order (religious and lay men and women who try to emulate Saint Francis' spirit in performing works of teaching, charity, and social service). This manuscript was written in Italy.
Written in Italy, perhaps by Franciscus de Arimino.
The title of this volume can be translated as Pharmacopoeia in use at Chester Hospital. Chester Hospital probably refers to Chester Royal Infirmary, founded in 1755, and known as Chester Infirmary until 1914.
'Archibald John Richardson, Draper, Hotiern, Doncaster.' is written at the front if the volume, in the same hand as the prescriptions. It may be the name of the author, or a note written by the author. No further biographical information is available.
A card is pasted inside the back cover, which reads 'In affectioniate rememberance of Henry Motherby of Henshall, who died on the 26th December 1870, aged 41 years.' No further biographical information is available.
The name 'Pitt' is written on the inside of the front cover. No further biographical information is available.
Antonio Scarpa was born in Lorenzaga di Motta di Livenza, in 1752. He studied medicine at Padua, obtaining his doctorate in 1770. He was offered a chair in anatomy and theoretical surgery at the University of Modena, in 1772. He was appointed Professor of Human Anatomy at the University of Pavia, in 1783. He was also appointed director of the surgical clinic, in 1787. He held both chairs until 1804. Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) invited Scarpa to return to teaching surgery, in 1805, giving him a present of a box of silver and ivory surgical instruments. He eventually resigned from the teaching of surgery in 1813, but continued as dean of the faculty and director of medical studies and the anatomical laboratories. Scarpa founded the subject of orthopaedic surgery, first described the anatomy of the clubbed foot accurately and wrote a classic account of hernia. He recognised that atherosclerosis was a disease of the arteries and reported causalgia in 1832. He was also one of the first to give an accurate account of the nerve supply to the heart as well as the anatomy of the membranous labyrinth with its afferent nerves. He also introduced the concept of arteriosclerosis. He died in 1832 and his head was preserved. It is still in the museum of the History of the University [of Pavia?], but it is not known where Scarpa's body was buried.
It was previously thought that the volumes were written by Christopher Lloyd, Professor of History at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. This was due to letters inserted into the volumes from Christopher Lloyd to Jessie Dobson (Curator of the Hunterian Museum), in approximately 1960. However, Christopher Lloyd appears to be an academic rather than a medically qualified surgeon, and therefore was unlikely to be Sugeon Captain at Haslar Royal Naval Hospital in 1932.
It is possible that the volume is the work of Jack Leonard Sagar Coulter, Lloyd's co-editor on the Medicine and the Navy 1200-1900 series. Coulter was a Surgeon Captain and Surgeon Commander in the Royal Navy. However, according to the Medical Directories, Coulter was still at Bristol General Hospital in 1932. It is also possible that John Joyce Keevil, editor of earlier volumes in the Medicine and the Navy series, was the author of the volumes.
Homer Tyrrell Lane was born in America, in 1876. He had experience as an educator at the George Junior Republic. He became Superintendent of the Little Commonwealth, in Evershot, Dorset, England, from 1913-1918. It was a co-educational community run for children and young people, often categorised as delinquents. He was interested in offenders and expressive forms of education, and also worked as a psychotherapist. He pioneered what later became known as 'group therapy' and 'shared responsibility'. He died in 1925.
Westminster Hospital was established in 1719 as an infirmary for the poor and sick, expanding in 1721 and 1735. It was named Westminster Hospital from 1760, and moved to a new site at Broad Sanctuary in 1834, where it remained until 1939. For the first hundred years, the physicians acted more as consultants, attending chiefly on Wednesdays when the admissions were made. The Resident Apothecary and his pupil had the most contact with patients. Surgical cases were generally bladder stones or bone diseases.
"Mr Eyles" cannot be specifically identified, but he is possibly either Albert Eyles, born in 1740, and an apothecary in Cirencester, Gloucestershire; or John Eyles, an apprentice surgeon in 1769. Both these men are listed in Wallis and Wallis, Eighteenth Century Medics (1988).
Dr Joseph Adams, who wrote the original manuscript from which this version was copied, was a pupil of John Hunter. He lived at Hatton Garden, Holborn, and published Life of John Hunter in 1817. Joseph Adams was a corresponding member of the Faculty of Medicine in Paris, a Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians in London, and the author of Observations on Morbid Poisons. He died before 1823.
The Women's Employment Publishing Company Ltd was established by the Central Employment Bureau for Women around 1913/14 in order to deal with its publications. The Central Bureau had been issuing the twice-monthly journal 'Women's Employment' since 1899 and other occasional publications in connection with their work and it was this that the Women's Employment Publishing Company continued from the parent organisation's offices in Russell Square. In addition to the main periodical, the press was also responsible for the publication of numerous editions of 'Careers [later, 'and Vocational Training']: A Guide to the Professions and Occupations of Educated Women and Girls', 'The Finger Post', 'Hints on how to find work' and 'Open Doors for Women Workers'. The directors just before the outbreak of the Second World War were H John Faulk (Chairman), Miss E R Unmack (Managing Director) and Miss A E Hignell (secretary). Despite problems cause by this disruption and a decline in the number of readers in this period, the company survived and continued publishing 'Women's Employment' until 1974.
The register appears to have been compiled by an unknown physician at an unnamed hospital, presumably in London as the notebook was purchased from a stationer in Long Acre. The date on the spine is 190[illegible], however a list right at the end of the book is of 'Deaths 1901'.
These rolls of lottery tickets were printed in Dublin in 1753-1754 to raise money for the building of a new hospital in Great Britain St, Dublin, for poor lying-in women. The lottery was later abandoned.
John Haighton was born, Lancashire, about 1755; pupil of Else at St Thomas's Hospital; Surgeon to the guards; Demonstrator of Anatomy, St Thomas's Hospital, resigned, 1789; Lecturer in Physiology, [1788], and Midwifery with Dr Lowder, St Thomas's and Guy's Hospitals; conducted numerous physiological experiments; M D; Fellow, Royal Society; presided at meetings of the Physical Society at Guy's Hospital; joint editor of Medical Records and Researches, 1798; assisted Dr William Saunders in his Treatise on the Liver, 1793; silver medal of the Medical Society of London, 1790; his nephew, Dr James Blundell began to assist him in his lectures, 1814, and took the entire course from 1818; died, 1823.
Publications include: 'An Attempt to Ascertain the Powers concerned in the Act of Vomiting,' in Memoirs of the Medical Society of London (ii. 250) (1789); A syllabus of the Lectures on Midwifery delivered at Guy's Hospital and at Dr Lowder's and Dr Haighton's Theatre in ... Southwark (London, re-printed 1799); A case of Tic Douloureux ... successfully treated by a division of the affected nerve. An inquiry concerning the true and spurious Cæsarian Operation, etc (1813).
William Lowder graduated doctor of medicine, Aberdeen, 1775; licentiate of the College of Physicians, 1786; practised midwifery; lectured at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals; died, 1801.
The Bristol Royal Infirmary was founded by Paul Fisher, a wealthy city merchant, 1735; in 1904, Sir George White saved the hospital from a major financial crisis; in 1948 it was acquired by the National Health Service.
The Lakeside Health Centre is a practice in London SE2.
The writer has not been identified though he seems to have been at Leyden University, where he studied under Franciscus [Deleböe] Sylvius [1614-1672], who was Professor of Medicine there from 1658 to his death. [Cf. p. 412.] But a careful search through R. W. Innes Smith's 'English-speaking Students of Medicine at the University of Leyden' 1932, has failed to suggest an appropriate name. The author appears to have practised at or near Watford, and on pp. 118-121 he has an entry on 'Epidemic diseases in and about Watford in 1717'. He also speaks on p. 923 of 'my father [in law?] Berrow': a John Berrow was Vicar of Watford who died in 1713.