Edward Coxere (1633–1694) was a Kentish merchant seaman, linguist, Quaker convert and autobiographer.

Autobiography

His manuscript autobiography surfaced in 1943 and was edited by

E. H. W. Meyerstein Edward Harry William Meyerstein (11 August 1889 – 12 September 1952) was an English writer and scholar. He wrote poetry and short stories, and a ''Life of Thomas Chatterton''. Early life and education Meyerstein was born in Hampstead, London ...

and published by Oxford University Press in 1945 as ''Adventures by Sea''. The small-format book has a map of Europe and North Africa as its end-papers. The text has 19 pages of prelims and 110 pages of text and 22 pages of notes, together with a sourced genealogical table. There are seven illustrations derived from the original manuscript.

Picaresque style of writing

''The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' article characterises Coxere's autobiography thus: "His

picaresque The picaresque novel (Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for " rogue" or "rascal") is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corrup ...

narrative, written in or after 1685, is one of the most vivid accounts of seafaring life, revealing an intelligent, brave and quick-witted man, hardened by danger and adversity but retaining both humour and humanity.".

ODNB The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

article by Bernard Capp, ‘Coxere, Edward (bap. 1633, d. 1694)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 4 July 2011
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Imprisonment in Dover Castle

After his conversion to the

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

faith, he suffered several terms of imprisonment, including a long period in

Dover Castle Dover Castle is a medieval castle in Dover, Kent, England and is Grade I listed. It was founded in the 11th century and has been described as the "Key to England" due to its defensive significance throughout history. Some sources say it is the ...

Pronanciation of his name

It is likely that his surname was pronounced "Coxery".

Autobiography

Picaresque style of writing

Imprisonment in Dover Castle

Pronanciation of his name

References

Further reading