Henry Aldrich (15 January 1648 – 14 December 1710) was an English theologian, philosopher, and composer.
Life
Aldrich was educated at
Westminster School
(God Gives the Increase)
, established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560
, type = Public school Independent day and boarding school
, religion = Church of England
, head_label = Hea ...
under
Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered
Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1689 was made
Dean
Dean may refer to:
People
* Dean (given name)
* Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin
* Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk
* Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean
Titles
* ...
in succession to the
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
John Massey, who had fled to the
Continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geographical regions
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas t ...
.
In 1692, he became Vice-Chancellor of the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
until 1695. In 1702, he was appointed
Rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of
Wem in Shropshire, but continued to reside at
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, where he died on 14 December 1710.
He was buried in
Christ Church Cathedral without any memorial, at his own request.
Works
Henry Aldrich was a man of unusually varied gifts. A
classical scholar of fair merits, he is best known as the author of a little book on
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
(''Artis Logicæ Compendium''
). Although not innovative in the field of Logic itself (it closely follows
Peter of Spain's ''Summulae Logicales''), its insistent use by generations of Oxford students has shown it to be of great synthetic and didactic value: the Compendium continued to be read at Oxford (in
Mansel's revised edition) till long past the middle of the 19th century.
Aldrich also composed a number of anthems and church services of high merit, and adapted much of the music of
Palestrina
Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pre ...
and
Carissimi to English words with great skill and judgment. To him we owe the well-known catch, "Hark, the bonny Christ Church bells."
Evidence of his skill as an architect may be seen in the church and
campanile of
All Saints Church, Oxford, and in three sides of the so-called
Peckwater Quadrangle
The Peckwater Quadrangle (known as "Peck" to students) is one of the quadrangles of Christ Church, Oxford, England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Christ Church Library is on the south side of the quad. To the southeast is Canterbury Quad ...
of Christ Church, which were erected after his designs. He bore a great reputation for conviviality', and wrote a humorous
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
version of the popular ballad ''A soldier and a sailor, A tinker and a tailor'', etc.
Another specimen of his wit is furnished by the following epigram of the five reasons for drinking:
:If on my theme I rightly think,
:There are five reasons why men drink:—
:Good wine; a friend; because I'm dry;
:Or lest I should be by and by;
:Or — any other reason why.
This epigram is a translation of the following Latin dictum attributed by the
Menagiana to
Jacques Sirmond:
:''Si bene quid memini, causae sunt quinque bibendi;''
:''Hospitis adventus, praesens sitis atque futura,''
:''Aut vini bonitas, aut quaelibet altera causa.''
Aldrich had a large personal library of ca. 3000 books, 8000 pieces of music, and 2000 engravings which he bequeathed to Christ Church upon his death. His engravings constitute one of the earliest surviving English collections in this field.
References
Sources
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aldrich, Henry
1647 births
1710 deaths
People educated at Westminster School, London
Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford
English Christian theologians
English composers
English logicians
17th-century English architects
Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford
Deans of Christ Church, Oxford
Vice-Chancellors of the University of Oxford
Burials at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford
English philosophers
English male poets