Andrew Perne (26 April 1589),

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

and

Dean of Ely The position of Dean of Ely Cathedral, in East Anglia, England, in the Diocese of Ely was created in 1541 after the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The first Dean of Ely had been the last Benedictine prior of Ely. List of deans Early modern ...

, was the son of John Perne of

East Bilney East Bilney is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Beetley, in the Breckland district, in the county of Norfolk, England. East Bilney is located north-west of Dereham and north-west of Norwich. In 1931, the parish had a pop ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

Biography

Perne was educated at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

, graduating BA in 1539, BD in 1547 and DD in 1552. He was elected fellow of St John's in 1540, but moved to Queens' later that year. He was successively bursar and dean of Queens', culminating in becoming vice-president in 1551, and was five times vice-chancellor of the university. Scurrilous Puritans said he had once been the homosexual lover of John Whitgift, later Archbishop of Canterbury, with whom he went to live in old age at Lambeth Palace. But he owes his notoriety to his remarkable versatility, and, like

the Vicar of Bray The Vicar of Bray is a satirical description of an individual fundamentally changing his principles to remain in ecclesiastical office as external requirements change around him. The religious upheavals in England from 1533 to 1559 (and then from ...

, he was always faithful to the national religion, whatever it might be. A

weathervane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...

he donated with his initials of AP was said to have swung between 'A Papist','A Protestant', and 'A Puritan', depending on which way the wind blew. In April 1547 he advocated

Catholic doctrines The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, but recanted two months later, and his

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

faith was strengthened during

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

's reign; he was appointed a royal chaplain and canon of Windsor. Soon after

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

's accession, however, he perceived the error of his ways and was made Master of

Peterhouse Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite o ...

in 1553 and Dean of Ely in 1557. He preached the sermon in 1557 when the bodies of

Martin Bucer Martin Bucer ( early German: ''Martin Butzer''; 11 November 1491 – 28 February 1551) was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. Bucer was originally a me ...

and

Paul Fagius Paul Fagius (1504 – 13 November 1549) was a Renaissance scholar of Biblical Hebrew and Protestant reformer. Life Fagius was born at Rheinzabern in 1504. His father was a teacher and council clerk. In 1515 he went to study at the University of ...

were disinterred in Cambridge and burnt for

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

, and also, remarkably, in 1560 when these proceedings were reversed and the dead heretics were rehabilitated. In

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

's reign he subscribed the

Thirty-nine Articles The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion (commonly abbreviated as the Thirty-nine Articles or the XXXIX Articles) are the historically defining statements of doctrines and practices of the Church of England with respect to the controversies of the ...

, denounced the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

and tried to convert Abbot Feckenham to Protestantism; and in 1584 Whitgift in vain recommended him for a bishopric. He was selected as the type of Anglican prelate by the authors of the

Martin Marprelate Martin Marprelate (sometimes printed as Martin Mar-prelate and Marre–Martin) was the name used by the anonymous author or authors of the seven Marprelate tracts that circulated illegally in England in the years 1588 and 1589. Their principal f ...

tracts and other Puritans, who nicknamed him "Old Andrew Turncoat", "Andrew Ambo", "Old Father Palinode". Cambridge wits, it was said, translated "perno" by "I turn, I rat, I change often"; and a coat that had often been turned was said to have been "perned". Historian Alice Hogge recounts an episode in which a close friend asked Perne "to tell her honestly and simply which was the holy religion that see her safe to heaven". Perne replied that, if she wished, she could ''live'' in the religion which the Queen (Elizabeth I) and the kingdom professed – Anglicanism – "but don't ''die'' in it. Die in faith and communion with the Catholic Church, that is, if you want to save your soul". As Hogge notes wryly, he never had the chance to follow his own advice, dying suddenly on the way back to his room after dining – and "in the headquarters of that faith nglicanism

Lambeth Palace Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is situated in north Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames, south-east of the Palace of Westminster, which houses Parliament, on the opposite ...

itself". On his death, he bequeathed the greater part of his library to

, where he had been Master, together with the funds to house it in what is now the Perne Library there.

Notes

References

Attribution: *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perne, Andrew 1510s births 1589 deaths Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Fellows of Queens' College, Cambridge Fellows of Peterhouse, Cambridge 16th-century English clergy Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cambridge Masters of Peterhouse, Cambridge Deans of Ely Canons of Windsor 16th-century English educators