William Beloe facts for kids

William Beloe (born in 1756 – died April 11, 1817) was an English church leader and writer. He was known for his many books and translations.

Early Life and Education

William Beloe was born in Norwich, England. His father was a tradesman, and William received a good education. He went to different schools, including one taught by Reverend Matthew Raine and another by Samuel Parr. Beloe described Parr as a strict teacher. William faced some challenges at school, including disagreements with other students and getting into trouble for writing short, witty poems called epigrams.

After finishing his own studies, Beloe worked as an assistant teacher at Norwich grammar school for three years. He then moved to London.

Career and Writings

In London, William Beloe started working for publishers. In 1793, he helped create a magazine called British Critic with Robert Nares. He also helped many other writers with their books, even though his help was not always publicly known.

In 1796, Beloe became a rector, which is a type of church leader, at Allhallows, London Wall. Later, in 1803, he became the keeper of printed books at the British Museum. This meant he was in charge of many important books. However, in 1806, he had to leave this job because he was held responsible for some books that went missing from the museum.

Beloe translated many important works from ancient languages into English. These included writings by Coluthus, Alciphron, Herodotus, and Aulus Gellius. He also helped with a book called Biographical Dictionary.

One of his most important projects was Anecdotes of Literature and Scarce Books. He started this work when he was at the British Museum. He published six volumes of this book, with the last one coming out in 1812.

Later Life and Controversies

William Beloe's last book was called The Sexagenarian, or Recollections of a Literary Life. It was published right after he died in 1817. This book caused a lot of discussion and disagreement among people. Some readers, including his old teacher Samuel Parr, were very upset and felt that Beloe had been unfair in what he wrote about others.

Beloe passed away on April 11, 1817. He was unhappy in his final years due to health problems and other personal issues.

His Family

In 1780, William Beloe married Mary Anne Rix in Norwich. They had several children. Four of their sons and a daughter named Margaret survived him. Margaret later married a man named William. His granddaughter, Margaret Louisa Harriet Beloe, married William Scott. She was the mother of Clement William Scott, who became a famous theatre critic.