Thomas Twyne facts for kids
Thomas Twyne (born in 1543 – died August 1, 1613, in Lewes) was a very smart person from the Elizabethan era in England. He was a doctor and a translator who lived in Lewes, Sussex.
Thomas is best known for finishing a big translation project. He completed Thomas Phaer's English translation of Virgil's famous poem, the Aeneid. He also translated a book called De remediis utriusque fortunae in 1579. This book was a collection of 253 Latin conversations written by a famous Italian writer named Francesco Petrarca, often called Petrarch.
Thomas's father, John Twyne, was also a translator and a school teacher. He collected old manuscripts. Thomas's own son, Brian Twyne, later became the first person in charge of the historical records at the University of Oxford.
Thomas grew up in Canterbury and studied at Corpus Christi College, Oxford. He even acted in a play called Palamon and Arcite in 1566. This play was performed for Elizabeth I at Oxford. He was supported by an important person named Lord Buckhurst. Thomas also looked up to John Dee, who was a famous scholar and mystic.
A Doctor's Legacy
Thomas Twyne was a respected doctor in his time. After he passed away, a special message was carved on his memorial tablet. This tablet is in St. Anne's Church in Lewes.
The message talks about how important he was as a physician. It says that when the doctor Twyne was gone, diseases seemed to spread more easily. People in Sussex felt sad and missed him greatly. The message suggests that it would be hard to find another doctor as good and famous as he was.
A modern version of 46 of Petrarch's dialogues, titled Phisicke Against Fortune, was published in 1993.
Thomas Twyne's Translations
Thomas Twyne worked on several important translations during his life. He helped make knowledge from Latin and other languages available in English.
- In 1573, he translated Humphrey Llwyd's book Commentarioli Descriptionis Britannicae Fragmentum into English. It was called The Breviary of Britayne.
- In 1578, he translated Pierre Drouet's work, which was titled A new counsell against the plague. This book gave advice on how to deal with the plague.
- In 1584, he translated Maffeo Vegio's Supplement to the Twelfth Book of the Aeneid. This was an addition to the famous Aeneid poem.
