Thomas Smith
Sir Thomas Smith was an influential English scholar and statesman born in 1513, the son of a sheep farmer. Despite a challenging childhood marked by sickness and poverty, Smith displayed exceptional intellectual talent, leading him to study at Cambridge University from a young age. He became a king's scholar and eventually ascended to the position of vice-chancellor of Cambridge by the age of thirty. Smith was deeply engaged in academic debates, particularly concerning the Greek language, and published works advocating for the correct writing of English. His career also saw him involved in royal court politics, where he served under Edward VI, held positions such as provost of Eton College, and faced political turbulence after conflicts with influential figures. Following a period of incarceration along with the Duke of Somerset, Smith returned to public life, advocating for the marriage of Queen Elizabeth I to a British subject in a notable publication. He later served as ambassador to France and produced his renowned work, "De republica Anglorum." Despite attempts to retire, Smith remained active in politics until his permanent withdrawal in 1576, a year before his death.
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Thomas Smith
Nonfiction Writer and Poet
- Born: December 23, 1513
- Birthplace: Walden, Essex, England
- Died: August 12, 1577
Biography
Sir Thomas Smith, the son of a sheep farmer, was born in 1513 in England. During his boyhood in Essex, Smith was a sickly child, but he made up for his physical deficiencies with his clearly brilliant intellect. At age eleven, Smith left his family’s humble farm to study at Cambridge. At age fourteen, he was a fellow of Queen’s College, but his health and relative poverty forced him to withdraw from his studies. Fortunately, Smith had caught the interest of King Henry VIII’s physician, who intervened and returned Smith to Queen’s College. He became a king’s scholar and led a remarkable academic career. By the time Smith was thirty, in 1543, he was vice-chancellor of Cambridge University.
Smith became involved in an academic scandal regarding the proper pronunciation of Greek and its usage. The Greek language had fallen out of favor with scholars. Although Smith agitated to have Greek reinstated to its former importance, his efforts failed. Smith’s interests then turned to ancient English, and he later published De recta et emendata linguæ anglicæ scriptione (on the correct and reformed manner of writing English) in response to the scandal in 1568.
By 1547, Smith’s brilliance found him appointed to the royal court in the service of Edward Seymour, then known as the Earl of Hertford, later to be named Duke of Somerset and Protector of the Realm. Smith used his position to acquire more prestigious posts, being appointed provost of Eton College and dean of Carlisle. Within a year, Smith was appointed secretary to the King Edward the VI. After an argument with the Duke of Somerset, Smith was briefly exiled from the court, during which time he wrote A Compendious or Briefe Examination of Certayne Ordinary Complaints, which was published posthumously.
In the fall of 1549, the Duke of Somerset was imprisoned, and Smith found himself joining the Duke in the Tower of London. During the year that he spent incarcerated, Smith wrote poetry and studied astrology. After his release, Smith retired to his country estates, where he spent the next ten years. However, in 1561 when Queen Elizabeth ascended to the throne and threw the nation into turmoil with her refusal to wed, Smith released an article on the subject, including “Dialogue on the Queen’s Marriage,” in which he advocated the queen marrying a British subject.
This heralded Smith’s return to politics, and the following year he was appointed ambassador to the French court. It was while suffering from homesickness in France that Smith composed his best-known work, De republica Anglorum, which, like many of his other pieces, was published posthumously. Smith returned to England in the late 1560’s, where he briefly attempted to retire once again. He soon returned to public life with a series of ill-fated business ventures and a half-hearted return to court. Smith finally retired permanently in 1576, and died a year later.