John Pory facts for kids

Quick facts for kids John Pory
The title page of Pory's translation of Leo Africanus's A Geographical Historie of Africa (1600)
Born	1572 England
Died	1636 (aged 63–64) England
Occupation	Government administrator, traveller, author, journalist
Period	1600–1636
Subject	Exploration, geography, travel

John Pory (1572–1636) was an important English figure from the 1600s. He was a politician, a government worker, a traveler, and a writer. He was also a very good linguist, meaning he was skilled in languages. Some people think he might have been the very first news reporter in English!

John Pory played a big role in the early American colonies. He was the first Speaker of the Virginia General Assembly. This was like the first parliament or law-making group in America. Pory helped set up the rules for how this group would work. Many of these rules are still used today, even though the members now choose their own Speaker.

Early Life and Education

John Pory was born in England in 1572. He went to Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, a famous university. He earned his first degree in 1592 and a master's degree in 1595.

Politician and Explorer

Pory became a Member of Parliament (MP) in 1605. This meant he was chosen to represent the town of Bridgwater in the English government. He served in this role until 1610.

Travels Across Europe and Beyond

John Pory loved to travel and explore. In 1607, he traveled through France and the Low Countries (like modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands). He even helped with a plan to bring silkworm farming to England.

From 1611 to 1616, Pory traveled even further. He went across Europe, visiting Italy and even reaching Istanbul (in modern-day Turkey). In Istanbul, he worked as a secretary for the English ambassador, Sir Paul Pindar. Later, in 1617, he was also a secretary for the English ambassador to Savoy (a region in modern-day France and Italy).

Working in the Virginia Colony

In 1619, Pory made a big trip to the new English colony in Virginia. The colony was only about ten years old then. He went as a secretary to the new governor, Sir George Yeardley.

On July 30, 1619, Governor Yeardley and Pory started the first meeting of the Virginia General Assembly. This meeting happened in Jamestown. They decided what topics to discuss and brought together representatives from each town. Governor Yeardley also made Pory the Speaker of this assembly. Pory helped set up committees to study important issues and created rules for the meetings, much like the rules used in the English Parliament.

Pory spent several years in Virginia, from 1619 to 1621 and again from 1623 to 1624. He explored Chesapeake Bay by boat in 1620. In 1624, he returned to England and lived in London permanently. He later wrote important stories about the Jamestown colony in Virginia and the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts.

Friends and Early Writings

Early in his career, around 1597, John Pory became friends with Richard Hakluyt. Hakluyt was a famous geographer and writer. Hakluyt called Pory his "very honest, industrious, and learned friend." Pory was also friends with other important people of his time, like Sir Robert Cotton and William Camden.

It was Hakluyt who encouraged Pory to write his first book. Pory translated a geography book by Leo Africanus. This translation was published in 1600 as A Geographical Historie of Africa.

Early News Reporting

From the early 1620s, while in London, Pory helped Nathaniel Butter. Butter was starting to create news publications for the English public. Pory worked from Butter's shop. He was a "correspondent" because he exchanged many letters with important people he had met during his travels and work.

Other men of his time also exchanged news through letters. But Pory was special because he used his knowledge and contacts to help Butter's early newspapers. Pory also had his own news service. He charged people for regular news reports. For example, Viscount Scudamore paid Pory £20 for a year of weekly news updates in 1632.

In some ways, Pory was one of the first to do what many public figures do today. He moved between government jobs, journalism, and private work. He met many people in different places and kept up with them through letters.

Influence on Writers and History

Modern experts who have studied Pory's writings and letters have found connections to famous writers like John Donne and John Milton. It's even thought that Shakespeare might have used ideas from Pory's book about Africa for his play Othello. Ben Jonson also used it for his play The Masque of Blackness.

Pory's letters give us a lot of information about life in London and at the royal court during his time. He wrote about things like the last hours of Sir Walter Raleigh and fights between nobles at the Blackfriars Theatre.

Family Life

John Pory was the son of William Pory, who likely died around 1606. William Pory lived in Thompson, Norfolk, England. John Pory was born on March 16, 1572, and he had a twin sister named Mary.

We know that John Pory was a first cousin of Temperance Flowerdew. He wrote in a letter in 1618 that Sir George Yeardley, Temperance's husband, had married his "Cousin German" (meaning first cousin). This shows how connected Pory was to the early leaders of the Virginia colony.

John Pory's mother was Anne Ball. Anne was the sister of Martha Stanley, who was Temperance Flowerdew's mother. This means John Pory and Temperance Flowerdew shared grandparents.