Alexander Nevill (MP)
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Alexander Neville (1544–1614) was an English scholar, known as a historian and translator and a Member of the House of Commons.


Life

Alexander Neville was the brother of
Thomas Nevile Thomas Nevile ( – 2 May 1615) was an English clergyman and academic who was Dean of Peterborough (1591–1597) and Dean of Canterbury (1597–1615), Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge (1582–1593), and Master of Trinity College, Cam ...
, Dean of Canterbury, and son of Richard Neville of
South Leverton South Leverton is a village and civil parish in Bassetlaw, north Nottinghamshire, England, four miles from Retford. According to the 2001 census it has a population of 478, increasing marginally to 480 at the 2011 census, and more substantial ...
,
Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
, by Anne Mantell, daughter of Sir Walter Mantell (d.1529) of Nether Heyford,
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...
. His mother's sister, Margaret Mantell, was the mother of the poet
Barnabe Googe Barnabe Googe (11 June 15407 February 1594), also spelt Barnabe Goche and Barnaby Goodge, was a poet and translator, one of the earliest English pastoral poets. Early life Barnabe Googe, born 11 June 1540 ( St Barnabas Day), in Alvingham, Lin ...
. Alexander was educated at
St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...
, and graduated M.A. in 1581, at the same time as
Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (; 10 November 1565 – 25 February 1601) was an English nobleman and a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I. Politically ambitious, he was placed under house arrest following a poor campaign in Ireland during th ...
. On leaving the university he seems to have studied law in London, where he became acquainted with
George Gascoigne George Gascoigne (c. 15357 October 1577) was an English poet, soldier and unsuccessful courtier. He is considered the most important poet of the early Elizabethan era, following Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey and leading to ...
. He is one of the five friends whom Gascoigne describes as challenging him to write poems on Latin mottoes proposed by themselves. Neville soon entered the service of Archbishop
Matthew Parker Matthew Parker (6 August 1504 – 17 May 1575) was an English bishop. He was the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England from 1559 to his death. He was also an influential theologian and arguably the co-founder (with Thomas Cranmer ...
apparently as a secretary, and edited for him ''Tabula Heptarchiae Saxonicae''. He attended Parker's funeral on 6 June 1575, and wrote an elegy in Latin heroics. He remained in the service of Parker's successors,
Edmund Grindal Edmund Grindal ( 15196 July 1583) was Bishop of London, Archbishop of York, and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reign of Elizabeth I. Though born far from the centres of political and religious power, he had risen rapidly in the church durin ...
and
John Whitgift John Whitgift (c. 1530 – 29 February 1604) was the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1583 to his death. Noted for his hospitality, he was somewhat ostentatious in his habits, sometimes visiting Canterbury and other towns attended by a retinue of 8 ...
. Neville was a Member of Parliament, representing
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
in the Parliament of 1585, for
Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...
in 1597 and
Saltash Saltash () is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Cornwall". Saltash’s landmarks ...
in that of 1601. But he appears to have been inactive. He died on 4 October 1614, and was buried on 9 October in
Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...
, where his brother Thomas, the dean, erected a monument to commemorate both his brother and himself. He married Jane, daughter of Richard Duncombe of Morton, Buckinghamshire, and widow of Sir
Gilbert Dethick Sir Gilbert Dethick (c. 1510 – 3 October 1584) was a long-serving English officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He would eventually rise to the highest heraldic office in England and serve as Garter Principal King of Arms. Famil ...
, but left no issue.


Works

His major work was an account in Latin of
Kett's rebellion Kett's Rebellion was a revolt in the English county of Norfolk during the reign of Edward VI, largely in response to the enclosure of land. It began at Wymondham on 8 July 1549 with a group of rebels destroying fences that had been put up by wealt ...
of 1549, to which he appended a description of
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...
and its antiquities. The work, which was undertaken under Parker's guidance, was entitled ''A. Nevylii ... de Furoribus Norfolcensium Ketto Duce. Eiusdem Norvicus'', London (by Henry Binneman), 1575. A list of the mayors and sheriffs of Norwich was added. The dedication was addressed to Parker, and
Thomas Drant Thomas Drant (c.1540–1578) was an English clergyman and poet. Work of his on prosody was known to Sir Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser. He was in the intellectual court circle known as the 'Areopagus', and including, as well as Sidney, Edward ...
prefixed verses. A passage in it spoke of the laziness of the Welsh levies who had taken part in the suppression of Kett's rebellion, and compared the Welsh soldiers to sheep. Offence was taken by the government at this sneer, and a new edition was at once issued with the offensive sentences omitted and an additional dedication to Archbishop Grindal, the successor of Parker. Neville also published in 1576 'A. Nevylii ad Walliae proceres apologia' (London, by Henry Binneman), in which he acknowledged his error of judgment. The account of Kett was appended under the title 'Kettus' to
Christopher Ockland Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρει ...
's ''Anglorum Praelia'', 1582, and in 1615 an English translation by the Rev. Richard Woods of Norwich appeared with the title ''Norfolk Furies their Foyle under Kett and their Accursed Captaine: with a description of the famous Citye of Norwich''; another edition is dated 1623. Neville was also a writer of Latin verse and prose. His earliest publication was a translation of
Seneca Seneca may refer to: People, fictional characters and language * Seneca (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname : :* Seneca the Elder (c. 54 BC – c. AD 39), a Roman rhetorician, writer and father ...
's ''
Oedipus Oedipus (, ; "swollen foot") was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. A tragic hero in Greek mythology, Oedipus fulfilled a prophecy that he would end up killing his father and marrying his mother, thereby bringing disaster to his city and family. ...
'', into a rough ballad metre in 1563.It was first published as ''The Lamentable Tragedie of Oedipus the Sonne of Laius, Kyng of Thebes, out of Seneca. By A. Nevyle'', London, 1563.
Thomas Newton Thomas Newton (1 January 1704 – 14 February 1782) was an English cleric, biblical scholar and author. He served as the Bishop of Bristol from 1761 to 1782. Biography Newton was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge and was subsequently elec ...
included it in his ''Seneca his Tenne Tragedies'', London, 1581. In 1587 appeared Neville's ''Academiae Cantabrigiensis lacrymse tumulo ... P. Sidneij sacratae per A. Nevillum'', Cambridge, 1587, with a dedication to the
Earl of Leicester Earl of Leicester is a title that has been created seven times. The first title was granted during the 12th century in the Peerage of England. The current title is in the Peerage of the United Kingdom and was created in 1837. History Earl ...
. Sir John Harington commended this poem in his annotations on Ariosto's ''
Orlando Furioso ''Orlando furioso'' (; ''The Frenzy of Orlando'') is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form ...
'' (bk. 37). Neville also contributed English verses to his cousin Barnabe Googe's ''Eglogs and Sonettes'', 1563.


Notes


References

* * ;Attribution *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Neville, Alexander Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge 1544 births 1614 deaths 16th-century English historians English male non-fiction writers 16th-century English male writers 16th-century English translators 17th-century English historians 17th-century English translators
Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...
Members of the Parliament of England for Saltash English MPs 1589 English MPs 1597–1598 English MPs 1601