John Hewitt (1807–1878) was an English

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

Life

Born at

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

, he studied music in youth, and was for some time organist of St. Mary's Church there. Subsequently he was appointed to a post in the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

. It brought him into the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

. He worked under

Robert Porrett Robert Porrett (1783–1868) was an English amateur chemist and antiquary. Life The son of Robert Porrett, ordnance storekeeper at the Tower of London, he was born in London on 22 September 1783. He began work in his father's department as an assi ...

, was encouraged to take an interest in the national collection of arms and armour there, and produced a pioneering guide.Royal Armouries page, ''John Hewitt''.
/ref> While living in London was well known in literary society. He enjoyed the friendship of Bulwer Lytton,

Mary Howitt Mary Howitt (12 March 1799-30 January 1888) was an English poet, the author of the famous poem '' The Spider and the Fly''. She translated several tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Some of her works were written in conjunction with her husband, ...

Anna Maria Hall Anna Maria Hall (6 January 1800 – 30 January 1881) was an Irish novelist who often published as "Mrs. S. C. Hall". She married Samuel Carter Hall, a writer on art, who described her in ''Retrospect of a Long Life, from 1815 to 1883''. She was ...

, Allan Cunningham,

Leigh Hunt James Henry Leigh Hunt (19 October 178428 August 1859), best known as Leigh Hunt, was an English critic, essayist and poet. Hunt co-founded '' The Examiner'', a leading intellectual journal expounding radical principles. He was the centr ...

, and others. For many years he resided at

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

, but on his retirement from the War Office he returned to Lichfield, where he died on 10 January 1878.

Works

Hewitt contributed to many periodicals as a young man. He used the pseudonym Sylvanus Swanquill. His works include: * ‘The Tower

f London F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. His ...

its History, Armories, and Antiquities: before and since the Fire,’ London, 1841, published by the authority of the master-general and board of ordnance. It went through several editions in English, French, and Spanish. * ‘Chart of Ancient Armour from ye XI to ye XVII cent.,’ with descriptions of the figures in the chart ondon, 1847 * ‘Ancient Armour and Weapons in Europe: from the Iron period of the Northern nations to the end of the eventeenthcentury,’ 3 vols., London, 1855–60. * ‘Official Catalogue of the Tower Armories,’ London, 1859. * ‘Old Woolwich,’ 1860, published by the Royal Artillery Association. * ‘Handbook for the City of Lichfield and its Neighbourhood,’ Lichfield, 1874; 2nd edit. 1884. * ‘Handbook of Lichfield Cathedral,’ 1875; 3rd edit., enlarged by the Dean of Lichfield (E. Bickersteth), Lichfield, 1886. * An enlarged edition of

Charles Alfred Stothard Charles Alfred Stothard (5 July 1786 – 28 May 1821) was an English antiquarian draughtsman, with a special interest in monumental effigies. Life Stothard was born in London, the son of the painter, Thomas Stothard. He was educated at a sch ...

's ‘Monumental Effigies,’ London, 1876. * Numerous contributions to the ''

Archæological Journal ''The Archaeological Journal'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal for archaeological and architectural reports and articles. It was established in 1844 by the British Archaeological Association as a quarterly journal, but was taken over by the B ...

'' and ''

The Reliquary ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', including a series of papers in the latter on ''Mediæval Arms and Armour''.

References

;Attribution

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hewitt, John 1807 births 1878 deaths English antiquarians People from Lichfield