Thomas Sternhold
Thomas Sternhold was an English Renaissance writer best known for co-authoring the first Church of England songbook, the Sternhold and Hopkins psalter, alongside John Hopkins. Although the specifics of his birth and early life remain unclear, it is believed he came from Gloucestershire and attended Oxford without obtaining a degree. He is first documented in 1538 as a courtier in the royal household of Thomas Cromwell, serving under both Henry VII and Edward VI in various roles, including overseeing the royal wardrobe and working as an administrator at Saint Bartholomew's Hospital.
Sternhold’s initial contributions to the psalter included versifications of nineteen Psalms published in 1548, which later expanded to thirty-seven Psalms after his death in 1549. His work laid the foundation for what would become an official Anglican psalter, later integrated into the Book of Common Prayer. Interestingly, Sternhold likely viewed his verses as courtly recitations rather than as an official songbook. His writings were influenced by the French tradition of sung psalms, which emerged during a period of exile for many English Protestants. Overall, Sternhold's legacy is intertwined with the development of Anglican worship and the evolution of its musical practices.
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Thomas Sternhold
Writer
- Born: Early 1500’s
- Birthplace: Possibly Southampton or Awre, Gloucestershire, England
- Died: August 23, 1549
Biography
English Renaissance writer Thomas Sternhold was the author, along with John Hopkins, of the first Church of England songbook, known as a psalter. A variation of the original book containing his verses was in use by the Church until the nineteenth century, with the last of more than six hundred editions printed in 1828.
Sternhold’s birth place and date are unknown, although scholars speculate that he likely came from Gloucestershire. He attended Oxford, although he did not take a degree. The earliest definitive reference to him in historical documentation is in Thomas Cromwell’s 1538 record of the royal household, where Sternhold is listed as one of the king’s courtiers. Sternhold served both Henry VII and Edward VI, working in various capacities, including overseeing the care of the king’s wardrobe and serving a term as an administrator of Saint Bartholemew’s Hospital. He was a member of Parliament for Plymouth and was an active supporter of Henry VII’s new religion from its inception.
The psalter for which Sternhold is remembered, known as the Sternhold and Hopkins psalter, did not appear in its familiar form until significantly after Sternhold’s death in 1549. It was compiled by Hopkins, who added to it, drawing on two books: Sternhold’s original 1548 versifications of nineteen Psalms, published as Certayne Psalmes Chose out of the Psalter of David, and Drawe into English Metre, by Thomas Sternhold Grome of Ye Kynges Maiesties Roobes, and a new collection released the following year, shortly after Sternhold’s death, which contained eighteen more versifications, for a total of thirty- seven. The first volume went through two editions before the second was printed, and thirteen editions are known of the second, which included an introduction and several versifications by Hopkins.
Although Sternhold’s work did eventually form the foundation of an official Anglican psalter to accompany the Book of Common Prayer, Sternhold himself considered the verses to be lyrics for recitation at court and likely could not have imagined their eventual popularity. Fragmentary musical settings for the verses by Chapel Royal composer John Shepherd and Edward VI’s court composer and lutenist Philip van Wilder are extant and attest to a courtly context for the original work. Sternhold likely only published the verses because of Edward’s interest and patronage, as the worship services for the Church of England during his lifetime did not formally allow music and he could not have intended his collection to function as an official songbook. The English would have come into contact with a French tradition of sung psalms while in Continental exile during the reign of the Catholic Queen Mary. This French tradition likely influenced the Anglican church service’s evolution toward the inclusion of episodic music.