William Englebert (died 1634), was a noted inventor and engineer in the reign of Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

. According to

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

, he was "an incomparable engineer", and

John Norden John Norden (1625) was an English cartographer, chorographer and antiquary. He planned (but did not complete) a series of county maps and accompanying county histories of England, the '' Speculum Britanniae''. He was also a prolific writer ...

praised him as "an excellent engineer". Elizabeth I awarded him an annual pension of one hundred marks.

Background

William Englebert was the son of N Englebert (or Engleberde) of

Sherborne Sherborne is a market town and civil parish in north west Dorset, in South West England. It is sited on the River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The parish includes the hamlets of Nether Coombe and Lower Clatcombe. T ...

, Dorset and educated at

Sherborne School (God and My Right) , established = 705 by Aldhelm, re-founded by King Edward VI 1550 , closed = , type = Public school Independent, boarding school , religion = Church of England , president = , chair_label = Chairman of the governors , ...

Professional career

While information on Englebert's work is scarce, he was an innovator in fen draining and worked in

Deeping Fen Deeping Fen is a low-lying area in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England, which covers approximately . It is bounded by the River Welland and the River Glen, and is extensively drained, but the efficient drainage of the land exerc ...

with Captain Thomas Lovell for which he was greatly praised by

in 1618. He was a patron and mentor to fellow inventor and engineer

Gabriel Plattes Gabriel Plattes (c.1600–1644) was an English writer on agriculture and science, and also now recognised as the author of the utopian work '' Description of the Famous Kingdome of Macaria'', often attributed to Samuel Hartlib under whose name it ...

who dedicated two of his works to Englebert.Charles Webster, The Intellectual Revolution of the Seventeenth Century, publisher=Routledge, date=2012 Frustrated by a lack of opportunity in England in his later life, he requested King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

's Privy Council for leave to serve Foreign Princes and States, being prepared to waive his pension on that condition, but he was denied license to depart.

Background

It is not known whether Englebert married. In his later years he lived in Westminster, where he died in 1634.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chafe, Thomas 1634 deaths People educated at Sherborne School 16th-century English engineers 17th-century English engineers