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EVANGELICAL

BIOGRAPHY.

ABBOT, ROBERT, eldest brother to the excellent George Abbot, archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Guilford in Surry, in 1560, and was educated, there with his brother under the same schoolmaster; till being esteemed qualified for the university, he was sent to Baliol College, Oxford, in 1575, where he took his degree of M. A. in 1582; became a noted preacher there, and was a constant lecturer at St. Martin's church, in the Quadrivium, and sometimes at Abingdon in Berkshire. His preferment was owing to his merit, particularly in preaching; for upon the first sermon he delivered at Worcester, he was chosen lecturer in that city, and soon after rector of All Saints in the same place; and upon a sermon which he preached at Paul's Cross, he was presented to the rich benefice of Bingham, in Nottinghamshire, by John Stanhope, Esq. one of his auditors. In 1594, he became no less eminent for some of his writings; particularly against a certain priest, on the Sacrament. He then took his degrees in divinity; that of Doctor being conferred on him in 1597. In the beginning of the reign of king James I. he was made chaplain in ordinary to his majesty; who had such a high esteem of him, as a writer, that he ordered a second edition of the Doctor's book," De Antichristo "to be printed with his own commentary upon part of the Apocalypse, in 1608: an honour which that king did to no other of the great clerks in this kingdom. Indeed Dr. Abbot's pen had now brought him into general esteem, and the work which he published in defence of William Perkins's Reformed Catholic, against Dr. William Bishop, a seminary priest, but afterwards, in the pope's style, a titular bishop of the aerial diocese of Chalcedon. At the end of this excellent book is added a VOL. I.-No. 1.

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treatise

treatise he soon after wrote, entituled, "The true ancient, Roman Catholic," which he dedicated to prince Henry; to whom it was so acceptable, that he returned him many thanks in a letter written with his own hand, and promised his assistance, upon the next vacancy, to advance him higher in the church and though by that prince's untimely death the doctor lost some hopes, yet, in the course of time, his deserts found other friends to do him that justice.

In 1609, he was unanimously elected master of Baliol College; where, says Dr. Featley, "he was careful and skilful, to set in this nursery the best plants; and then took such care to water and prune them, that in no plat, or knot, throughout the university of Oxford, there appeared more beautiful flowers, or grew sweeter fruit, than in Baliol College, while he was master." His diligent lectures to his scholars, and his continual presence at the public exercises, both countenanced the readers, and encouraged the hearers. These regulations and improvements he further wrought, by establishing piety, which had been much neglected; restoring peace, which had long been wanted; and making temperance more familiar among them, which had been too great a stranger in that society. In May 1610, he was nominated by the king among the first fellows of his majesty's royal college at Chelsea, then newly founded, and designed as a kind of fortress for controversial divinity; being thus engarrisoned, as it were, with the most able and select champions for the Protestant cause, against all assaults of Popery. In November following he was made prebendary of Normanton in the church of Southwell. Upon his preaching before the king, during his month of waiting at court, in 1612, when the news of Dr. Thomas Holland's death was brought from Oxford, his majesty named him to succeed to the theological chair, usually called the king's professor of divinity; but, through modesty, he refused the same, until his brother procured a mandate from the king for him to hold it. As regius professor he had the character given

* Whilst he sat in the divinity chair at Oxford, he preached a sermon before the university, in which he so significantly laid open the oblique methods then used by those who secretly favoured Popery, to undermine the Reformation; and Dr. Laud, then present, was suspected to be one who used those methods, insomuch that professor Abbot's reflections were applied by the whole auditory to him. Herupon Dr. Land wrote to his patron, Dr. Neal, then bishop of Lincoln, (in 1614,) to know whether he should not make a direct reply to it. The passage Laud objected to was, that Abbot should say, “There were men, who, under pretence of truth, and preaching against the Puritans, struck at

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given him of a profound divine; most admirably read in the fathers, councils, and schoolmen; and a more moderate Calvinist, than either of his two predecessors, Holland and Humphrey, were; which he expressed by countenancing the sublapsarian way of predestination.

Upon the king's perusal of his "Antilogia," against the "Apology of Garnet," and the same of his incomparable lectures in the university, upon the king's supreme power against Bellarmine and Suarez, (printed after his death,) his majesty, when the see of Salisbury became vacant, sent his congé d'elire for him to the dean and chapter. Thus as he set forward, one foot in the temple of virtue, his other still advanced in the temple of honour, though indeed but leisurely; which is imputed to his own humility, the obstruction of his foes, who traduced him for a Puritan, though cordial to the doctrine of the church of England, and the unwillingness of some friends to adorn the church with the spoil of the university, and mar a professor to make a bishop. He was consecrated by his own brother George, the archbishop of Canterbury, Dec, 3, 1615, in his chapel at Lambeth. When he went to king James, to do his homage, the king said pleasantly to him, “ Abbot, I have had very much to do to make thee a bishop; but I know no reason for it, unless it were, because thou hast written against one;" alluding to the titular bishop before mentioned.

In his way to Salisbury, he made a farewell oration at the university of Oxford, with great applause. Some fragments of it are preserved, in the original Latin, by two authors, and a translation, or epitome, in English, by a third. His brethren, the heads of houses, and other Oxford friends, parted with him on the edge of his diocese with tears of the heart and root of that faith and religion now established among us; which was the very practice of Parsons and Campion, when they came hither to seduce young students; who, afraid to be expelled if they should openly profess their conversion, were directed to speak freely against the Puritans, as what would suffice: so these do not expect to be accounted Papists, because they speak only against Puritans; but because they are indeed Papists they speak nothing against them: or if they do, they beat about the bush, and that softly too, for fear of dis quieting the birds that are in it." In consquence of this passage, Laud, in his letter to the bishop of Lincoln, complains, "that he was fain to sit patiently at the rehearsal of this sermon, though abused almost an hour together, being pointed at as he sat; yet would have taken no notice of it, but that the whole university applied it to him: and his friends told him he should sink in his credit, if he answered not Dr. Abbot in his own: nevertheless he would be patient; and desired his lordship to vouchsafe him some direction." But as we do not find that Laud did answer it, the bishop might, perhaps, have given him directions to remain quiet. See Wood's Athena Oxoniensis, 1721, vol. 1. col. 430. B 2

grief;

grief; and the gentry of Salisbury received him with those of joy. When he came to Salisbury, he found the cathedral running to decay, through the negligence and covetousness of the clergy belonging to it: however, he found means to draw five hundred pounds from the prebendaries, which he applied to the reparation of this church. He then gave himself up to the duties of his function with great diligence and assiduity, visiting his whole diocese in person, and preaching every Sunday, whilst health would permit, which was not long; for his sedentary course, and close application to study, brought upon him the gravel and stone. But in all the bodily torments of his last fit, his soul was at ease; and his heavenly hopes disposed him to resign all earthly enjoyments. He was so far from needing the advice of patience, to render the remainder of life supportable, that he gave it to others. Even to the judges, who in their circuit came to visit him on his death-bed, he spared not his Christian admonitions; and besides his precepts, gave them his example, of the comforts that flowed from a clear conscience. He mourned less to leave the world, than the inhabitants to part with him, who had so much endeared himself to them, by diligence in his pastoral charge, hospitality, bounty to the poor, and humble carriage to all. Having summoned his domestics, with an intention to declare his faith, he was persuaded to refrain from it, because it was manifest in his writings. Thus, with exhortations, benedictions, and the pains of his disease, quite exhausted, he lay a while slumbering; and at length, with his eyes and hands uplifted to heaven, he resigned his soul into the hands of his Creator, March 2, 1617, in the 58th year of his age, and before he had filled this see two years and three months; being one of the five bishops who presided over the cathedral of Salisbury in six years. His last words were, "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly: finish in me the work thou hast begun. Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit, for thou hast redeemed me, thou God of truth. Save thy servant, who hopeth and trusteth in thee alone. Let thy mercy be shewed upon me. In thee have I hoped; let me not be confounded for ever!"

This worthy prelate was buried opposite to the bishop's seat in the cathedral. Having been twice married, he left one son, and one daughter, named Martha, who was married to sir Nicholas Brent, wardeh of Merton College, Oxford; and their daughter, Margaret, who married Dr. Edward Corbet, rector of Haseley in Oxfordshire, who presented some of the bishop's manuscripts to the Bodleian library.

Dr.

Dr. Abbot was author of the following pieces: 1. "The MirFor of Popish Subtilties: discovering the Shifts which a cavilling Papist, in behalf of Paul Spence, a priest, hath gathered out of Saunders and Bellarmine, &c. concerning the Sacraments, &c." Dedicated to Archbishop Whitgift. London, 4to. 1594.-2. "The Exaltation of the Kingdom and Priesthood of Christ. A Sermon on the Hundred and Tenth Psalm." Dedicated to Bishop Babington. London, 4to. 1601,-3. "Antichristi demonstratio, contra Fabulas Pontificias, ad ineptam Bellarmini, &c." Dedicated to K. James. London, 4to. 1603, and 8vo. 1608. This book is much commended by Scaliger.-4. "Defence of the Reformed Catholic of Mr. William Perkins, against the Bastard CounterCatholic of Dr. William Bishop, Seminary Priest." Dedicated to K. James. The first part was printed in 4to. 1606, the second part, 4to. 1607, and the third part, 4to. 1606*.—5. "The Old Way; a Sermon, at St. Mary's, Oxford." Oxon. 4to. 1610. This sermon was dedicated to Archbishop Bancroft, and translated into Latin by Thomas Drax.-6. "The true ancient Roman Catholic: being an Apology against Dr. Bishop's Reproof of the Defence of the Reformed Catholic." Dedicated to Prince Henry, 4to. 1611.— 7. "Antilogia: adversus Apologiam Andreæ Endæmon Johannis, Jesuitæ, pro Henrico Garnetto Jesuito proditore t." Dedicated to K. James. London, 4to. 1613.-8. "De gratiâ et perseverantiâ Sanctorum, Exercitationes habitæ in Academia Oxoniensi." Dedicated to Prince Charles. London, 4to, 1618. and Frankfort, 8vo. 1619.-9. "In Ricardi Thomsoni, Angli-Belgici, Diatribam, de amissione et intercessione Justificationis et Gratiæ, animadversio brevis ‡." London, 4to. 1618.-10. "De supremâ Potestate Regiâ, Exercitationes habitæ in Academia Oxoniensi, contra Rob. Bellarmine et Franc. Suarez." London, 4to. 1619.

• This is a most elaborate work. It has been wished that W.Bishop had answered all the Reformed Catholic of Dr. Abbot; then we should have had in Abbot's encounter, a whole system of controversies exactly discussed; and the truth of the reformed religion, in all points solidly confirmed, by scripture, fathers, and reason. It may be worth mentioning, that from a small typographical error in a particular author, there is another also who has fallen into an egregious mistake concerning this book: for the former, mentioning "Dr. Abbot's two volumes against Bishop's," next to another book which was written by his brother, the archbishop, has, by not oblitering the mark of the genitive case from the latter name, and by neglecting to distinguish it as a proper name, given occasion to a foreigner to make his said brother, the archbishop, author of a Treatise against BISHOPS; which, as has been truly observed, would be somewhat extraordinary in a metropolitan.

The Apology, which occasioned this answer, was printed three years before, with the true name of the Jesuitical author, as may be seen in the life of sir W. Raleigh, prefixed to the last edition of his History. This book, which he finished on the last day of his life, was in course printed after his death. His brother, the archbishop, directed Dr. Featley, the bishop's domestic chaplain, to draw up, from his Grace's notes, the attestation which is fixed to it.

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