Smith, Thomas

Smith, Thomas
(1513-1578)
   English humanist and statesman. After study at Cambridge University, he continued his education abroad at Paris and Padua. He taught Greek at Cambridge from 1535 to 1540 and was involved in the attempt of several Cambridge humanists, led by John Cheke, to introduce the pronunciation of Greek proposed by Erasmus, rather than the traditional one based on medieval Byzantine practice. This effort was opposed by the conser-vative chancellor of Cambridge, Bishop Stephen Gardiner, who re-garded it as disrespectful of tradition. Smith was a noted collector of books and under Queen Elizabeth I served abroad as an ambassador. He is best known as the author of De república Anglorum / On the English Polity (written in 1563 but not published until 1583), a con-cise and well informed account of the actual workings of English law and government in his time. In this work he distinguishes England, despite its having a king, from contemporary states because it is a commonwealth in which power is shared among crown, nobility, burgesses, and yeomen. Indeed, he classes England not as a monar-chy but as a "democracy."

Historical Dictionary of Renaissance. . 2004.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Smith, Thomas Kilby — • U.S. General and journalist. Born at Boston, Mass., 23 Sept., 1820; died at New York, 14 Dec., 1887 Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006 …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Smith, Thomas —    , London, 1756 to 1799. This well known maker was a pupil of Peter Wamsley. His violoncellos are of the Steiner model, and some of them possess considerable power, and were formerly highly esteemed, but they are now considered to be deficient… …   Violins and Violin Makers. Biographical Dictionary

  • R v Smith (Thomas Joseph) — R. v. Smith (Thomas Joseph) [1959] 2 QB 35, [1959] A.C. is an English criminal law case, dealing with causation and homicide. The court ruled that negligence of medical staff does not break the chain of causation in murder casesThe victim was… …   Wikipedia

  • Smith, Thomas John — ▪ 1999       Australian racehorse trainer who was said to have been the country s most successful; among his credits were 34 Sydney trainers premierships 33 of them successive and two Melbourne Cups, four Caulfield Cups, six Golden Slippers, and… …   Universalium

  • Thomas Cavalier-Smith — Nacimiento 21 de octubre de 1942 (69 años) Ocupación …   Wikipedia Español

  • Thomas Kilby Smith —     Thomas Kilby Smith     † Catholic Encyclopedia ► Thomas Kilby Smith     Born at Boston, Mass., 23 Sept., 1820; died at New York, 14 Dec., 1887; eldest son of Captain George Smith and Eliza Bicker Walter. Both his paternal and maternal… …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Thomas et Ann Borrow — Thomas Borrow, 1762 3 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Christopher Hofland — Derby from a Field adjoining Abbey Barns Naissance 1777 Wor …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Ewing, Jr. — Thomas Ewing, Jr. Thomas Ewing, Jr. Naissance 7 août 1829 Lancaster (Ohio) Décès …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Ashby — (14 October 1874, Ashford Road, Staines, Middlesex – 15 May 1931) was a British archaeologist.FamilyHe was the only child of Thomas Ashby (1851–1906), and his wife, Rose Emma, daughter of Apsley Smith. His father belonged to the well known Quaker …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”