Laurence Echard (c. 1670–1730) was an English

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

and clergyman. He wrote a ''History of England'' that was a standard work in its time.

Life

Echard was the son of the Rev. Thomas Echard or Eachard of Barsham,

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

, by his wife, the daughter of Samuel and Dorothy Groome, and was born at Barsham. On 26 May 1687, at the age of 17, he was admitted as a

sizar At Trinity College, Dublin and the University of Cambridge, a sizar is an undergraduate who receives some form of assistance such as meals, lower fees or lodging during his or her period of study, in some cases in return for doing a defined jo ...

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

, where he graduated B.A. in 1692 and M.A. in 1695. Having been ordained by John Moore,

bishop of Norwich The Bishop of Norwich is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of the county of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. The bishop of Norwich is Graham Usher. The see is in the ...

, he was presented to the livings of Welton and Elkington, Lincolnshire, and appointed chaplain to the

Bishop of Lincoln The Bishop of Lincoln is the ordinary (diocesan bishop) of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury. The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and ...

. For more than 20 years Echard remained in Lincolnshire, chiefly at

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia **Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

, and wrote several works. On 24 April 1697 he was installed as prebendary of Louth at Lincoln Cathedral, and on 12 August 1712 as

Archdeacon of Stow The Archdeacon of Stow and Lindsey is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln. History The Archdeaconry of Stow is an ancient division of Lincoln diocese; the first archdeacons are recorded from around 1092 (t ...

. In or about 1722 Echard was presented by George I with the livings of

Rendlesham Rendlesham is a village and civil parish near Woodbridge, Suffolk, United Kingdom. It was a royal centre of authority for the king of the East Angles, of the Wuffinga line; the proximity of the Sutton Hoo ship burial may indicate a connection ...

and Sudbourne in Suffolk. There he lived in bad health for nearly eight years. He died at Lincoln, while on his way to

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

for the benefit of the waters, on 16 August 1730, and was buried in the chancel of St Mary Magdalen's Church on the 29th of that month.The Forgotten Historian. Ronald T. Ridley. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
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Works

Echard, Laurence – Dizionario geografico portatile, 1787 – BEIC 3935375

Echard translated

Terence Publius Terentius Afer (; – ), better known in English as Terence (), was a Roman African playwright during the Roman Republic. His comedies were performed for the first time around 166–160 BC. Terentius Lucanus, a Roman senator, brought ...

, some

Plautus Titus Maccius Plautus (; c. 254 – 184 BC), commonly known as Plautus, was a Roman playwright of the Old Latin period. His comedies are the earliest Latin literary works to have survived in their entirety. He wrote Palliata comoedia, the gen ...

, and Pierre Joseph d'Orléans' ''

History of the Revolutions in England History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

''. He made numerous compilations on history, geography and the classics. His chief work is ''The History of England: from the first entrance of Julius Caesar and the Romans to the end of the reign of King James the first containing the space of 1678 years'' (1707–1720), covering the period from the Roman occupation to his own times. This continued to be the standard work on the subject until

Nicolas Tindal Nicolas Tindal (1687 – 27 June 1774) was the translator and continuer of the ''History of England'' by Paul de Rapin. Very few comprehensive histories existed at the time and Tindal wrote a three-volum'Continuation' a history of the Kingdom ...

's translations and expansions of Rapin de Thoyras's French ''Histoire d'Angleterre'' ("History of England") began to appear in English in 1727. Echard also wrote a history of the Roman republic from its founding to the Augustan settlement

Family

Echard married first Jane, daughter of the Rev. Potter of Yorkshire, and secondly Justin, daughter of Robert Wooley of

Well, Lincolnshire Well is a small estate village and civil parish about south of the town of Alford, in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish was 166 at the 2011 census. It is situated on the foot of the east e ...

. There were no children by either marriage.

Notes

References

;Attribution * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Echard, Laurence 1670 births 1730 deaths Archdeacons of Stow People from Waveney District British historians People from Louth, Lincolnshire