William Bavand facts for kids

William Bavand (who died in 1575) was an English lawyer and a person who translated books. He is best known for translating a book called The Good Ordering of a Commonweal in 1559. The original book was written by Johannes Ferrarius.

William Bavand's Family Life

We don't know much about William Bavand's family. His father was Robert Bavand from Rostherne in Cheshire, England. Many people named Bavand lived in Cheshire. It's possible he was related to a priest named John Bavant, who also came from Cheshire. In his will (a legal document about his wishes after he dies) from 1575, William Bavand mentioned his wife, Barsaba. He also said he lived in Stoke Albany, Northamptonshire.

Training as a Lawyer

On August 15, 1557, William Bavand joined the Middle Temple in London. The Middle Temple was one of the "Inns of Court." These were places where young men learned to become lawyers. Edward Martin helped Bavand get into the Middle Temple. In 1558, Bavand helped Thomas Bowyer join. Thomas Bowyer later married the daughter of a famous religious scholar, Bartholomew Traheron.

Bavand quickly became important at the Middle Temple. By 1561, he worked as an under-treasurer. He worked under a well-known legal expert named Edmund Plowden. In 1562, Bavand became a "Bencher," which was a senior position. He stopped being under-treasurer by 1569. He was last mentioned at the Middle Temple in 1573.

Important Connections

Bavand made useful friends at the Middle Temple. In 1570, a gentleman named William Sheldon left Bavand some money in his will. Sheldon had also studied law at the Middle Temple. His daughter Catherine married Edmund Plowden, who was Bavand's boss.

Bavand might have been part of a group of important Roman Catholic families in central England. In 1570, Bavand was given the right to choose a new priest for a church in Solihull. The real person who owned this right was Robert Throckmorton. He was a well-known Roman Catholic gentleman. Throckmorton had also been a member of the Middle Temple. His daughter Anne married William Sheldon's son, Ralph Sheldon. Ralph was at the Middle Temple at the same time as Bavand. It seems likely that Bavand was related to John Bavan, a previous priest at Solihull, who became Roman Catholic and moved to Rome.

Translating The Good Ordering of a Commonweal

Bavand's translation of The Good Ordering of a Commonweal was printed in late 1559. He wrote a special message to Queen Elizabeth I. He signed it from the Middle Temple on December 20.

His book was a close translation of a German book. The original book was called De republica bene instituenda paraenesis. It was written by Johannes Ferrarius, a professor at a Protestant university in Germany. Ferrarius often used poems from old Latin writers to explain his ideas. Bavand translated these poems into English verse.

A poet named Jasper Heywood praised Bavand's work. Heywood wrote about Bavand in his own book's introduction. He called Bavand one of "Minerva's men," meaning a very smart person. Heywood wrote that Bavand "turned his tool, a Commonwealth to frame." This meant Bavand used his skills to create a book about how a country should be run. He also said Bavand gave "greater grace in English" to the original author. Other poets Heywood mentioned included Thomas North, Thomas Sackville, Thomas Norton, Christopher Yelverton, William Baldwin, Thomas Blundeville, and Barnabe Googe.