John Taylor (22 June 1704 – 4 April 1766), English classical scholar, was born at

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

in Shropshire, England.

Life

His father was a barber, and, by the generosity of one of his close customers, the son, having received his early education at the grammar school of his native town, was sent to

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 ...

. In 1732, he was appointed librarian, and in 1734 Registrary of the university. Somewhat late in life he took orders and became

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 Lawford in Essex in 1751, Archdeacon of Buckingham in 1753, canon of St Paul's in 1757. He died in London on 4 April 1766, aged 61 and was buried in

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

. He is also shown as Prebendary of Aylesbury from 1745 to 1747 and again from 1750 to 1756. Taylor is best known for his editions of some of the Greek orators, chiefly valuable for the notes on

Attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building; an attic may also be called a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because attics fill the space between the ceiling of the ...

law, e.g. '' Lysias'' (1739); Demosthenes' ''Contra Leptinem'' (1741) and ''Contra Midiam'' (1743, with

Lycurgus Lycurgus or Lykourgos () may refer to: People * Lycurgus (king of Sparta) (third century BC) * Lycurgus (lawgiver) (eighth century BC), creator of constitution of Sparta * Lycurgus of Athens (fourth century BC), one of the 'ten notable orators' ...

' ''Contra Leocratem''), intended as specimens of a proposed edition, in five volumes, of the orations of Demosthenes, Aeschines,

Dinarchus Dinarchus or Dinarch ( el, Δείναρχος; Corinth, c. 361 – c. 291 BC) was a logographer (speechwriter) in Ancient Greece. He was the last of the ten Attic orators included in the "Alexandrian Canon" compiled by Aristophanes of Byzanti ...

, and Demades, of which only vols. ii and iii were published. Taylor also published (under the title of ''Marmor Sandvicense'') a commentary on the inscription on an ancient marble brought from Greece by

Lord Sandwich Earl of Sandwich is a noble title in the Peerage of England, held since its creation by the House of Montagu. It is nominally associated with Sandwich, Kent. It was created in 1660 for the prominent naval commander Admiral Sir Edward Montagu ...

, containing particulars of the receipts and expenditures of the Athenian magistrates appointed to celebrate the festival of Apollo at

Delos The island of Delos (; el, Δήλος ; Attic: , Doric: ), near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island are ...

in 374 BC. His ''Elements of Civil Law'' (1755) also deserves notice. It was severely attacked by

William Warburton William Warburton (24 December 16987 June 1779) was an English writer, literary critic and churchman, Bishop of Gloucester from 1759 until his death. He edited editions of the works of his friend Alexander Pope, and of William Shakespeare. Li ...

in his ''

Divine Legation of Moses ''The Divine Legation of Moses'' is the best-known work of William Warburton, an English theologian of the 18th century who became bishop of Gloucester. As its full title makes clear, it is a conservative defence of orthodox Christian belief agains ...

'', professedly owing to a difference of opinion in regard to the persecution of the early Christians, in reality because Taylor had spoken disparagingly of his scholarship.

References

;Attribution *

External links

* English classical scholars Archdeacons of Buckingham Cambridge University Librarians Registraries of the University of Cambridge Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge People educated at Shrewsbury School English male writers Clergy from Shrewsbury 1704 births 1766 deaths Writers from Shrewsbury {{England-academic-administrator-stub