William Lily
William Lily, likely born in 1468 in Odiham, Hampshire, England, was a prominent educational figure and scholar during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He studied under notable Latinist John Stanbridge at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he possibly formed a friendship with Thomas More. After graduating around 1490, he embarked on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, which included stops in Rhodes and Rome, where he met influential scholars such as John Colet. Lily initially served as a clergyman before transitioning to a role as a private tutor and later becoming the first "high master" of St. Paul's School in London, appointed by Colet in 1512. He significantly contributed to the school's curriculum by introducing Greek studies, and his work on Latin grammar became foundational, leading to the establishment of what would be known as the Royal Grammar. His literary contributions included a Latin poem for his students and a guide for a fortune-telling game. Lily is believed to have passed away in December 1522, with records indicating he may have succumbed to the plague, a common cause of death during that period. His legacy includes not only educational advancements but also familial ties to later notable figures in literature and astronomy.
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William Lily
- Born: 1468
- Birthplace: Odiham, Hampshire, England
- Died: December 1, 1522
- Place of death: London, England
Biography
William Lily, or Lilye—who should not be confused with the seventeenth century astrologer William Lilly—was probably born in 1468, in Odiham, Hampshire, England. Nothing is known of his parents, but his godfather, William Grocyer, was master of divinity at Magdalen College, Oxford, where Lily became a pupil of a notable Latinist, John Stanbridge, in 1488. He may well have met Thomas More at Oxford; the two certainly became good friends in the following decade, and indulged in such undergraduate pursuits as competing in the production of Latin translations of Greek epigrams, publishing a volume of such exercises in 1518. Lily probably graduated from Magdalen in 1490 or thereabouts, and then set off on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. On the return journey, he spent some time in Rhodes, where the knights of St. John maintained an armed presence, and then stayed at the English hospice in Rome, where he met several notable scholars, including John Colet.
The contacts Lily made during his travels served him well; John Kendall of the Knights of St. John recommended him for a living at Holcot in Northamptonshire in 1492, although he gave it up in 1495 to work as a private tutor. He married soon afterwards. He and his wife Agnes had six children; the eldest, George Lily, became a noted astronomer, and the following generation included the dramatist John Lyly. John Colet found Lily a more apt vocation in 1512, when he appointed him as the first “high master” of the revitalized St. Paul’s School, and he became a key influence on the school’s progressive curriculum, broadening the traditional Classical education by introducing the teaching of Greek.
Most of Lily’s writing was done in association with his educational duties at St. Paul’s. His most notable literary work is a Latin poem, couched as advice to his pupils; he also addressed a panegyric to Charles V to commemorate the day when the emperor rode past the school gates. His main claim to fame, however, was his contribution to the Latin grammar used at the school, which became known as the Royal Grammar when a succession of Tudor monarchs—Henry VIII, Edward VI and Elizabeth—gave it specific approval to be used in schools throughout England. It was continually revised thereafter—eventually turning into the Eton Latin Grammar—but the original version probably owes far more to Lily than to Colet, to whom credit for it is usually given. Lily’s less earnest endeavors included a translation of Lorenzo Spirito’s Il sorte, which Thomas More asked him to do; the document is a guide to a parlor game in which dice are used as a fortune-telling device for the purposes of amusement.
Lily is thought to have died in December, 1522, although a codicil was added to his will in February, 1553, and the memorial stone commissioned by his son George is dated February 25, 1553. His wife and four of his children predeceased him, perhaps carried off by the plague. He was said to have died of the same cause, although sixteenth century diagnoses are notoriously unreliable.