Reginald Wolfe facts for kids
Reginald (also known as Reyner) Wolfe was an important printer in England during the 1500s. He was born in the Netherlands but became a key figure in English printing. He was also one of the first members of the Royal Stationers' Company, a special group for printers and booksellers.
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Reginald Wolfe: A Printer's Journey
Reginald Wolfe was born in a place called Druten in the Netherlands. He was a very smart and religious Protestant. He moved to England before 1530 and started his business as a bookseller in London, near St. Paul's Churchyard.
Wolfe began printing books in 1542. He was the first printer in England to have a large collection of Greek letters for printing. This was a big deal because it meant he could print books in ancient Greek.
Royal Printer and Stationers' Company
King Edward VI made Reginald Wolfe the Royal Printer for Latin, Greek, and Hebrew books. This was a very important job! The King also gave him a yearly payment for the rest of his life.
Even though he was a Protestant, Queen Mary I, who was Catholic, still chose him as one of the first members of the Stationers' Company. This shows how respected he was. Later, under Queen Elizabeth I, he became the Master of the Company several times. He led the group in 1559, 1564, 1567, and 1572.
Publishing Important Works
Reginald Wolfe published books by many famous people of his time. These included Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, the historian John Leland, the mathematician Robert Recorde, and Archbishop Matthew Parker.
In 1548, Wolfe had a big idea. He wanted to create a huge book called a "Universal Cosmography." This book would describe the whole world and include histories of every known country. He hired two helpers, Raphael Holinshed and William Harrison, to work on this massive project.
However, Wolfe passed away in 1573 before the book was finished. Much of the information he collected was later used by Raphael Holinshed. In 1577, Holinshed published it as The Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland. This book is now usually known as Holinshed's Chronicles.
Wolfe's Family
Reginald Wolfe was married to a woman named Joan, who passed away in 1574. After his death, Joan briefly managed his printing business. They had two sons, John and Robert. They also had two daughters. One daughter married John Harrison, who was also a bookseller. Their other daughter, Elizabeth, married Stephen Nevinson.
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