Sir (Nicholas) Harris Nicolas (10 March 1799 – 3 August 1848) was an English

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artefacts, archaeological and historic sit ...

Life

The fourth son of Commander John Harris Nicolas RN (1758–1844) and Margaret (née Blake), he was born at Dartmouth. He was the brother of Rear Admiral

John Toup Nicolas Rear Admiral John Toup Nicolas Royal Navy, RN Order of the Bath, CB Royal Guelphic Order, KH (1788–1851) was a Royal Navy officer. Nicolas was born in East Looe, Cornwall. He entered the Royal Navy in 1797 and later served on various ships ...

RN CB KH; 1st Lt

Paul Harris Nicolas Paul Harris Nicolas (1 March 1790 – 1 May 1860) was a nineteenth-century British historian, an accomplished, if little known, water colourist, a Royal Marines officer, and a veteran of the Battle of Trafalgar. Nicolas was the author of the two ...

RM; and Lt Keigwin Nicholas RN. Having served in the navy from 1812 to 1816, he studied law and was called to the bar at the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in 1825. His work as a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

was confined principally to

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

cases before the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, and he devoted the rest of his time to the study of

genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...

and history. In 1831, he was made a

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

of the

Royal Guelphic Order The Royal Guelphic Order (), sometimes referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Kingdom of Hanover, Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent (later King George IV). It takes its name from the House ...

, and, in 1832, chancellor and Knight Commander of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

(KCMG), being advanced to Grand Cross of the order in 1840. He became a member of the council of the Society of Antiquaries in 1826, but soon began to criticise the management of the Society's affairs, and withdrew in 1828. He was elected a member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society in ...

in 1838. He criticised the

Record Commission The Record Commissions were a series of six Royal Commissions of Great Britain and (from 1801) the United Kingdom which sat between 1800 and 1837 to inquire into the custody and public accessibility of the state archives. The Commissioners' work ...

, which he regarded as too expensive. These attacks, which brought him into controversy with

Francis Palgrave Sir Francis Palgrave, (; born Francis Ephraim Cohen, July 1788 – 6 July 1861) was an English archivist and historian. He was Deputy Keeper (chief executive) of the Public Record Office from its foundation in 1838 until his death; and he is ...

, led in 1836 to the appointment of a select committee to inquire into the public records. Nicolas was also responsible for several reforms at the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

. In 1822, he married Sarah (d. 1867), daughter of John Davison of

Loughton Loughton () is a suburban town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. The town borders Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell, Chingford, and Buckhurst Hill, and lies north-east of Charing Cross. For statistical purposes ...

, Essex, a reputed descendant of the Tudor statesman William Davison. They had two sons and six daughters. Financial difficulties compelled Nicolas to leave England, and he died near

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

Works

The most important of Nicolas' works is his ''History of the Orders of Knighthood of the British Empire; of the Order of the Guelphs; and of Medals, Clasps, &c., for Naval and Military Services'' (London, 1841–1842), which was the first attempt to write a general history of the British honours. Among his numerous other writings are:
''The Chronology of History''
(London, 1833) *''Life of William Davison'' (London, 1823)
Nicholas Harris Nicolas, ''Life of William Davison: Secretary of State and Privy Counsellor to Queen Elizabeth'', Nichols (1823)
*''Synopsis of the Peerage of England'' (London, 1825) *''Life and Times of Sir

Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton (12 December 1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early ...

'' (London, 1847) *an uncomplete
''History of the Royal Navy''
(London, 1847). He edited ''Proceedings and Ordinances of the Privy Council of England, 1386–1542'' (London, 1834–1837), and (with the help of

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

's daughter Horatia) ''Dispatches and Letters of Lord Nelson'' (London, 1844–1846); wrote lives of

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the List of national poets, national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the be ...

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scenes of the Engli ...

, William Collins, Henry Kirke White and others for Pickering's

Aldine Press The Aldine Press was the printing office started by Aldus Manutius in 1494 in Venice, from which were issued the celebrated Aldine editions of the classics (Latin and Greek masterpieces, plus a few more modern works). The first book that was d ...

edition of the poets; lives of

Izaak Walton Izaak Walton (baptised 21 September 1593 – 15 December 1683) was an English writer. Best known as the author of ''The Compleat Angler'' (1653), he also wrote a number of short biographies including one of his friend John Donne. They have been ...

and

Charles Cotton Charles Cotton (28 April 1630 – 16 February 1687) was an English poet and writer, best known for translating the work of Michel de Montaigne from French, for his contributions to ''The Compleat Angler'', and for the influential ''The Complea ...

for an edition of ''

The Compleat Angler ''The Compleat Angler'' (the spelling is sometimes modernised to ''The Complete Angler'', though this spelling also occurs in first editions) is a book by Izaak Walton, first published in 1653 by John and Richard Marriot, Richard Marriot in Lon ...

'' illustrated by James Inskipp;L. H. Cust, 'Inskipp, James (1790–1868)', rev. Chloe Johnson, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 8 Sept 2013
/ref> and several elaborate works on genealogical and kindred subjects printed for private circulation only.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicolas, Nicholas Harris English genealogists Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George 1799 births 1848 deaths Horatio Nelson English male writers English male non-fiction writers