John Leland
John Leland was an influential antiquarian born in the early sixteenth century, recognized for his foundational role in modern antiquarian studies. His early education at Saint Paul's School and subsequent studies at Christ's College, Cambridge, and Oxford set the stage for his lifelong dedication to documenting and preserving England's literary heritage. Leland's significant contributions began when he was royally commissioned to assess the contents of English monastery libraries, revealing the urgent need to catalog and safeguard these cultural treasures as monasteries faced dissolution.
His work included plans for a comprehensive dictionary of British authors and a detailed history of Britain, emphasizing both topographical and biographical information. Unfortunately, his ambitious projects were cut short due to mental health struggles, possibly linked to the obsessive nature of his work. Following his death in the mid-sixteenth century, much of Leland's research was recovered and posthumously published, notably in "The Itinerary of John Leland the Antiquary." His extensive compilations and insights have continued to inform and inspire scholars and antiquarians for centuries, underscoring his lasting impact on the field of historical documentation and the study of England's literary past.
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John Leland
Antiquarian
- Born: September 13, 1506
- Birthplace: London, England
- Died: April 18, 1552
Biography
John Leland, an antiquarian best known for founding modern antiquarian studies through his efforts to document, preserve, and study the contents of monastery libraries in England, was born in the very early sixteenth century; the year of his birth is in dispute. Information regarding his early life is documented only in his own youthful experiences with poetry; he references an older brother, also named John Leland, and adoption by Thomas Myles, who sent him to Saint Paul’s school, which steeped him in humanitarianism. It was here he bonded with others who would become important Renaissance figures such as Anthony Denny, Thomas Wriothesley, and Edward North.
After continuing to Christ’s College, Cambridge, for his B.A., Leland briefly tutored the son of the second Duke of York, and in so doing become affiliated with the young men involved with Thomas More’s household. Two years after his B.A., he went to Oxford. Four years after enrollment, he left for Paris to study with the great humanists. Here, François Du Bois fostered Leland’s involvement in ancient manuscripts and humanist textual criticism.
In Paris, Leland wrote verses of praise for those who would support the case of Henry VIII in court, thus seeking Henry’s favor in return. Within a few years, he returned to England and accepted a royal papacy. Henry sought to shore his case for divorce of Catherine by unearthing ancient doctrine from universities and monasteries. For Leland, this drove home the realization that there was no census of the contents of the English libraries. Several years later, he was royally commissioned to audit the English monastic and university libraries. He became aware that the monasteries would fail, and established a royal collection based in palace libraries at Westminster, Hampton Court, and Greenwich to salvage the literary treasures these held.
His interest turned to topographical and biographical information. Leland formed plans to publish a dictionary of British authors, a map of Britain with supporting material, a fifty-volume set on the history of Britain, and a three-volume history of the royal family’s book on medieval and classical British writers. Before work could begin, Leland fell mentally ill, some feel due to the obsessive nature of his work. Dr. Henry Rollin of the Royal College of Psychiatrists speculated on a diagnosis of a manic illness.
The printer Reyner Wolfe housed the incurably insane antiquarian. Leland died in the mid-sixteenth century, and his papers were given to Sir John Cheke, who dispersed these when forced to flee England during the reign of Queen Mary. A good deal of Leland’s work was recovered and published. His surviving papers provide the source of information about the dissolved English monasteries, and provide a prototype for the various county histories. His compilations of notes were published nearly a century later as The Itinerary of John Leland the Antiquary (1710-1712) and Joannis Lelandi De rebus Britannicis collectanea (1715). These continued to feed future scholars’ and antiquarians’ works centuries later.