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ABOVE: Hugh Latimer
"Commendo bobis beteranum illum Christi et nostrae gentis
Anglicanae berum Apostolum Hugonem Latimerum." - Ridley"Did there ever any man flourish, I say not in England only,
but in any nation in the world, after the Apostles,
who preached the Gospel more sincerely, purely and honestly,
than Hugh Latimer, Bishop of Worcester?" - Sir Richard Morison
TO
HIS GRACE
ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL,
Lord Archbishop of Canterbury,
WHO HAS BEEN JUDGED NOT UNWORTHY
TO OCCUPY THE SEES ONCE HELD BY
RIDLEY AND CRANMER;
THIS LIFE OF
" STOUT HUGH LATIMER,"
WHO WAS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE PRELATES IN
THEIR PIOUS LABOURS AND THEIR GLORIOUS DEATH,
IS BY PERMISSION
MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY
THE AUTHOR.
PREFACE
A LIFE of Latimer worthy of his position in English history and of his distinguished reputation, has long been a desideratum in our literature. Biographical notices of him, indeed, are not wanting; but these, always meagre, and usually inaccurate, are nothing worthy of the man who exercised so important an influence in promoting the English Reformation, and whom his countrymen have always admired as one of the best and noblest Christian heroes that England has produced. Such a life, therefore, seemed entitled to be set forth at large, both as a fitting tribute to his fame and his high character, and as an interesting portion of the history of our country during the momentous struggle for the Reformation of religion.
The present biographer hopes that in attempting this task he has not been enticed, by his long-cherished admiration of Latimer, into an undertaking altogether beyond his strength. He has at all events sedulously availed himself of such materials for his work as were within his reach. His aim has been, if possible, to look at Latimer as his contemporaries saw him; and, setting aside modern fanciful portraits, to reproduce, as far as may be, the very authentic image of the man as he spoke, and acted, and suffered, three centuries ago. Modern authorities, therefore, friendly or unfriendly, have been very little consulted; the narrative has been compiled almost exclusively, in its framework, and in its details, from contemporary documents. Latimer's published writings are rich in autobiographical allusions; a considerable number of his letters have been preserved among the Chapter House Papers in the State Paper Office; in the same invaluable repository, and among the MSS. in the British Museum, many documents have been found which throw much light upon his career; and the works of his contemporaries, especially of his great associates, Ridley and Cranmer, contain frequent references to one who for many years played so important a part in the transactions of the time.
From all these sources the author has gleaned what seemed best adapted to his purpose; he has used his best endeavours to arrange in consistent chronological order the oft-times confused and contradictory materials; what was obscure he has attempted to elucidate; what was manifestly wrong he has corrected; and with such skill and patience as he is master of, he has combined in one clear harmonious whole the facts and illustrations collected with no small labour from many scattered fields. He has endeavoured, notwithstanding his admiration of Latimer, to observe that impartiality which is due to truth; he has written, not as a panegyrist, but as a biographer; and has neither blindly praised all Latimer's conduct, nor wittingly suppressed any of his faults. And yet, to speak the truth, every honest biography of Latimer must be, more or less, a panegyric; for what language but that of praise can be suitably employed in writing of one who, in times of unwonted danger and difficulty, spent a busy life and died a brave death, with scarce a single imputation upon his honesty and courage, or the consistent Christian uprightness of his character?
It is not for the biographer to say how far he has accomplished his work successfully; but he claims for it, from the critic, that indulgence which is due to the first adventurer in a new field; it may fall far short of the greatness of the subject, but it is at all events a serious attempt to supply what has long been felt as a want in our literature. To the writer, indeed, the work has been in truth a "labour of love;" he only hopes that the reader in perusing the book may enjoy some share of the abundant pleasure with which it has been produced.
For the engraving which accompanies the work, the biographer has to record his acknowledgments to the Dean of Canterbury, who has kindly permitted it to be engraved from a portrait in the possession of the Dean and Chapter, which seems to possess a better claim than any other to be considered an authentic likeness of the great Reformer.
ST. LUKE’S, CHELSEA, August, 1869.
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10/05/2007
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