Lodowick Bryskett
Lodowick Bryskett was an English writer and civil servant, likely born around 1545 in Hackney, London. He was the son of Anthony Bryskett, a Genoese merchant who had settled in England. His family was involved in significant political and religious movements of the time, including efforts to renew communion with the Roman Catholic Church, which shaped Lodowick’s early life. Educated first at Tunbridge and then privately, he attended Trinity College, Cambridge, but did not complete a degree. Bryskett held various government positions, notably as clerk of the Privy Council of Ireland and later as secretary to Sir William Drury.
After losing his political influence, he turned to writing, producing his major work, *A Discourse of Civill Life*, in 1606, although he began it two decades earlier. This work primarily comprises a translation of Giambattista Giraldi's *Tre dialoghi della vita civile*, interspersed with Bryskett's original thoughts, offering insights into the values and intellectual currents of Elizabethan England. His writings reflect the ideals of Italian civic humanism, emphasizing ethics and civic responsibility. Lodowick Bryskett passed away in 1612, having inherited property from his father and acquired land in both Ireland and Chelsea.
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Subject Terms
Lodowick Bryskett
Writer
- Born: 1545
- Birthplace: London, England
- Died: 1612
- Place of death: Chelsea, London, England
Biography
Lodowick Bryskett was probably born around 1545 in his family’s house in Hackney, London. He was the third son of Anthony Bryskett, a Genoese merchant who had been resident in England from about 1523, but who did not receive letters of denization until 1536. Given the early date of his migration to England, it is probable that Anthony Bryskett was not an Italian exiled for his religious allegiance, although he is described as belonging to an English parish and hence conforming to the established Protestant church. His father was also very much involved in attempts by Pope Pius IV to renew England’s communion with Rome, a clandestine operation in which Lodowick’s older brother, Sebastian, was also deeply involved as a messenger, a role occasionally pressed upon Lodowick Bryskett as well. Bryskett was educated first at Tunbridge, and later, as a result of a lingering illness, by private tutors at home. In 1559 he entered Trinity College, Cambridge, but left before earning a degree.
Bryskett’s next political involvement was with Sir Henry’s son, Philip Sydney, who helped him net an appointment as clerk of the Privy Council of Ireland under Sir Henry in 1575. Other comfortable appointments followed, including Clerk in Chancery for the faculties in 1577, General Controller for customs on wines in 1579, and secretary to the great soldier Sir William Drury from 1578 to 1579. However, when Lord Grey was recalled from the tour he was going on with Bryskett, Bryskett resorted to writing, since he had lost his political influence.
Bryskett’s principal workA Discourse of Civill Life was first printed in 1606, even though he had begun it twenty years earlier, after his loss of office in 1582. It mainly consists of a translation of Tre dialoghi della vita civile (1565) by Giambattista Giraldi but also includes original passages by Bryskett interpolated into the text. These pasages give the entire work a much more personal character than is usually found in a translation. The text serves to illuminate the literary and intellectual world of Elizabethan England, with the fully developed ideals of Italian civic humanism founded upon the appropriate classical models, which are heavily concerned with issues of ethics and the responsibilities of the educated, articulate citizen. Bryskett received from part of his father’s property through inheritance and acquired former monastic land in Ireland, and he purchased English property at Chelsea, where he died in 1612.