Joshua Bassett or Basset (c. 1641 – c. 1720 in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

) was an English academic,

Master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Sidney Sussex College (historically known as "Sussex College" and today referred to informally as "Sidney") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1 ...

under James II. Bassett was the son of John Bassett, a merchant from

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is north-east of Peterborough, north-north-east of Cambridg ...

, Norfolk. In 1657 he was admitted to

Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, commonly known as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges an ...

, aged 16; he gained his MA in 1665 and became a fellow of Caius. He was ordained deacon in 1663 and priest of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

in 1666. King James II had him installed as Master of Sidney Sussex College by a royal mandate dated 3 January 1687, brought by Alban Francis, a Benedictine monk who functioned as Basset's chaplain. Bassett had declared himself a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

convert. The college had been founded in 1596 as an avowedly

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

foundation. The fellows of Sidney requested that their new master should take the anti-Catholic oath required by the college statutes, so a second royal mandate was issued on 12 January dispensing Bassett from taking the oaths of allegiance and supremacy. On 25 February a royal warrant exempted Bassett and other Cambridge converts from the oaths. Bassett was finally admitted as master on 7 March 1687. Bassett had a room in the Master's Lodge fitted as a Catholic chapel. The college chapel continued to be used for Anglican services, although Bassett locked the chapel door to prevent its use for the Gunpowder day service on 5 November 1687. In mid-November 1688, during the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...

, Bassett fled the college. He had controversially altered various aspects of college regulations and routine before he was removed as master. One publication ''Ecclesiae Theoria Nova Dodwelliana Exposita'' (1713) bears his name on the title page but he has been proposed as author of other works, including ''Reason and Authority'' (1687) and ''Essay towards a proposal for a Catholic communion ... by a minister of the Church of England'' (1704). He is said to have died in poverty.

References

* 1640s births 1720 deaths Year of death uncertain Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Fellows of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Masters of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge {{England-academic-bio-stub