Thomas Crofts facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Thomas Crofts
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A catalogue of his collection
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| Born | 1722 |
| Died | 1781 |
| Nationality | British |
| Education | Wadham College Oxford |
| Occupation | Anglican priest |
| Known for | Bibliophile |
Thomas Crofts (born 1722, died 1781) was a British priest who loved books. He was known as a bibliophile, which means someone who collects and loves books. He was also a member of the Royal Society, a famous group for scientists. Thomas Crofts traveled a lot around Europe.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Thomas Crofts was born in Monmouth, Wales. His father was John Crofts. When he was 17, he started studying at Wadham College, which is part of Oxford University. He earned his first degree in 1743 and another in 1746.
European Adventures
For about 20 years, Thomas Crofts spent his time in two ways. Sometimes he was a quiet student at Oxford University. Other times, he went on long trips across Europe.
On one trip in 1758 and 1759, he traveled with a young Oxford graduate named Thomas Knight. Knight was a relative of the famous writer Jane Austen. This trip was part of something called the "Grand Tour." Wealthy young men often took this trip to learn about art and culture in Europe. On these journeys, Crofts collected many rare books and old coins.
In 1763, Crofts became the Rector (a type of priest) in Donyat, Somerset, England. Later, he traveled even further to Aleppo, Syria. There, he worked as a chaplain for an English trading company in the late 1760s. He continued to study old things and add to his collections.
Friends and Books
In 1770, Crofts came back to England. He became a chaplain for the 4th Duke of Leeds. He lived in a fashionable part of London. He joined a group of smart people who met at a coffee house. This coffee house was at the shop of a bookseller named Thomas Payne.
Crofts had many famous friends and colleagues. These included Thomas Tyrwhitt, George Steevens, John Hoole, and William Hunter, who studied the human body and old coins. Crofts had a very large library. His friends often borrowed books from him. For example, Tyrwhitt used Crofts' books to help him with his work on 'The Canterbury Tales of Chaucer' (published in 1775). Hoole also used them for his translation of 'Orlando Furioso' (published in 1783).
In 1776, Crofts was suggested to become a member of The Royal Society. This is a very old and important group for science. His friends, including the famous naturalist Joseph Banks, helped him get nominated.
Also in 1776, Crofts was involved with some poems that were a bit of a trick. A young writer named Thomas Chatterton (who died in 1770) had written poems and pretended they were by a medieval monk named Thomas Rowley. Crofts suggested that Tyrwhitt, his friend, was an expert who could look at the "manuscripts." He also suggested Payne as a publisher. The poems were published as if they were real in 1777. However, Tyrwhitt later realized they were fake and showed them to be forgeries.
Later Life and Legacy
In the late 1770s, Thomas Crofts started to get sick. In January 1781, he sold his large collection of coins to his friend William Hunter. He passed away on November 8, 1781, at the home of the 4th Earl Fitzwilliam in Milton Park, Northamptonshire.
After he died, a tribute said that Crofts was "distinguished for his general attainments as well as antient erudition." This means he was known for being very smart and knowledgeable about old things. He learned not just from reading, but also from his intelligent travels.
His huge library was sold in 1783. It took 43 days to sell all 8,000 lots of books! Copies of the sale catalog, called 'Bibliotheca Croftsiana,' still exist today. Many of his books are now in important collections around the world.
See also
- Hunterian Collection
