John Clement (physician) facts for kids

John Clement (born around 1500 in Yorkshire, England; died July 1, 1572, in Mechlin, which is now in Belgium) was an important English doctor and scholar. He was a Roman Catholic and a humanist, which means he loved learning about ancient Greek and Roman ideas. He helped teach the children of the famous Sir Thomas More and later became the head of the College of Physicians, a group for doctors.

John Clement's Early Life and Education

John Clement went to school at St. Paul's School in London and then studied at Oxford University. He was very smart and loved languages.

Working with Sir Thomas More

Around 1519, John Clement joined the household of Sir Thomas More, a very famous English lawyer and statesman. Clement helped teach More's children and also assisted More with his studies in different languages.

University Professor and Marriage

While at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, a powerful church leader named Cardinal Wolsey made Clement a special teacher of rhetoric (the art of speaking and writing well). Later, he became a professor of Greek there. Around 1526, he married Margaret Giggs. She was also a scholar who had lived and studied with Thomas More's family, as More had adopted her.

Becoming a Doctor

John Clement decided to study medicine. On February 1, 1528, he became a Fellow of the College of Physicians, which meant he was a recognized doctor. King Henry VIII even chose him to look after Cardinal Wolsey when Wolsey was very ill in 1529. Clement held important positions at the College of Physicians, serving as a council member several times and as president in 1544.

Life in Exile

When Edward VI of England became king, John Clement had to leave England. He was a devout Catholic, and the new king's government was persecuting Catholics. Clement went to Louvain, a city in what is now Belgium, to escape this danger.

He returned to England when Mary Tudor became queen, as she was also Catholic. He worked as a doctor in Essex. However, when Elizabeth I became queen, Clement had to flee England again because she was Protestant and continued to persecute Catholics.

Mechlin was his last place of exile. He died there on July 1, 1572, and was buried in the cathedral church of St. Rumbold in that city.

John Clement's Writings

John Clement was not only a doctor but also a writer and translator. He wrote a book of poems called "Epigrammatum et aliorum carminum liber." He also translated several important works from Greek into Latin, including:

• The letters of St. Gregory Nazianzen.
• The sermons of Nicephorus Callistus about Greek Saints.
• The letters of Pope Celestine I to Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria.