Simeon Fox (or Foxe), M.D. (1568–20 April 1642) was an English physician, who became President of the

College of Physicians A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary school ...

Life

Fox was the youngest son of

John Foxe John Foxe (1516/1517 – 18 April 1587) was an English clergyman, theologian, and historian, notable for his martyrology '' Foxe's Book of Martyrs'', telling of Christian martyrs throughout Western history, but particularly the sufferings of En ...

, and was born in the house of the

Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The premier non-royal peer, the Duke of Norfolk is additionally the premier duke and earl in the English peerage. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the t ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, and on 24 August 1583 was elected a scholar of

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, where he proceeded B.A. in 1587, having become a fellow 24 August 1586. He graduated M.A. in 1591. Bishop

John Piers John Piers (Peirse) (1522/3 – 1594) was Archbishop of York between 1589 and 1594. Previous to that he had been Bishop of Rochester and Bishop of Salisbury. Life He was born at South Hinksey, near Oxford, and was educated at Magdalen Colleg ...

promised Fox a

prebend A prebendary is a member of the Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the choir ...

, but he preferred to study medicine. After leaving college he resided for some time with Archbishop

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 ...

, then visited Italy, and took the degree of M.D. at the

University of Padua The University of Padua (, UNIPD) is an Italian public research university in Padua, Italy. It was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from the University of Bologna, who previously settled in Vicenza; thus, it is the second-oldest ...

. On Fox's return home he engaged in military service, and was with Sir John Norris and the

Earl of Southampton Earl of Southampton was a title that was created three times in the Peerage of England. Its first creation came in 1537 in favour of the courtier William FitzWilliam. He was childless and the title became extinct on his death in 1542. Its s ...

in Ireland and the Netherlands. In the Low Countries he is said to have been taken prisoner and detained for a time at

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

. Fox reached London in 1603, and began to practise medicine, attaining prominence in his profession. He was admitted a candidate of the College of Physicians on 30 September 1605, and a fellow on 25 June 1608. He was censor in 1614, 1620, 1621, 1623, 1624, 1625, 1631, and 1632; registrar on 20 November 1627, on the death of Dr

Matthew Gwinne Matthew Gwinne (16 May 1558 – 1627) was an English physician. Life Gwinne was born in London on 16 May 1558. He was of Welsh descent, a son of Edward Gwinne, grocer. On 28 April 1570 he entered Merchant Taylors' School. He was elected to ...

; treasurer on 3 December 1629, on

William Harvey William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions to anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, pulmonary and systemic circulation ...

's resignation of that office; anatomy reader, 1630; elect, 22 December 1630, in place of the late

Thomas Moundeford Thomas Moundeford M.D. (1550–1630) was an English academic and physician, President of the London College of Physicians for three periods. Life The fourth son of Osbert Moundeford and his wife Bridget, daughter of Sir John Spelman of Narborou ...

; president from 1634 to 1640; consiliarius in 1641. Fox died at the college house at Amen Corner,

Paternoster Row Paternoster Row is a street in the City of London that was a centre of the London publishing trade, with booksellers operating from the street. Paternoster Row was described as "almost synonymous" with the book trade. It was part of an area call ...

, on 20 April 1642. In his will, dated 21 October 1641, proved by his nephew, Thomas Foxe, he described himself as of the parish of St Martin Ludgate, London, and desired to be buried

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...

, near to the monument of

Thomas Linacre Thomas Linacre or Lynaker ( ; 20 October 1524) was an English humanist scholar, Catholic priest, and physician, after whom Linacre College, Oxford, and Linacre House, a boys' boarding house at The King's School, Canterbury, were named. Linacre ...

; bequeathing the sum of £20 to the cathedral. Fox was buried according to his directions on 24 April.

Legacy

He also bequeathed to the college £40, to which his nephew added another £60. In 1656 the college, on the proposition of Baldwin Hamey, voted the erection of a marble bust to his memory in the Harveian Museum; the statue was destroyed in the

Great Fire of London The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through central London from Sunday 2 September to Wednesday 5 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old London Wall, Roman city wall, while also extendi ...

of 1666, as was his monument in St Paul's. His portrait in the college was one of two pictures rescued from the fire, but then disappeared. He attended

John Donne John Donne ( ; 1571 or 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under Royal Patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's, D ...

Dean of St Paul's The dean of St Paul's is a member of, and chair of the Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral in London in the Church of England. The dean of St Paul's is also '' ex officio'' dean of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of th ...

, and contributed liberally towards the erection of a monument to his memory. In

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

Harley MS 416 (ff. 203b, 210, 214) are three Latin letters of Fox, two of which are addressed to his father and brother

Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...

respectively. The life of his father prefixed to the second volume of the 1641 edition of the '' Actes and Monuments'', long attributed to his brother Samuel, has also been assigned, on weak grounds, to Simeon himself.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, Simeon 1568 births 1642 deaths 16th-century English medical doctors 17th-century English medical doctors People educated at Eton College