The correspondence of William Cole of Bristol with Sir Robert Southwell and Edward Southwell 1683-1701 / edited by Anthony Turner.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cole, William, -1701, author.

Southwell, Robert, Sir, 1635-1702, author.

Southwell, Edward, 1671-1730, author.

Contributor:

Turner, Anthony John, 1946- editor.

Bristol Record Society, issuing body.

Series:

Bristol Record Society's publications ; v. 78.

Bristol Record Society's publication ; vol. 78

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Cole, William, -1701--Correspondence.

Cole, William.

Southwell, Robert, Sir, 1635-1702--Correspondence.

Southwell, Robert.

Southwell, Edward, 1671-1730--Correspondence.

Southwell, Edward.

Naturalists--England--Bristol--17th century--Correspondence.

Naturalists.

Politicians--England--Bristol--Correspondence--17th century.

Politicians.

Diplomats--England--Bristol--Correspondence--17th century.

Diplomats.

Physical Description:

xii, 255 pages : illustrations (some color), facsimiles, maps, genealogical table ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

[Bristol, England] : Bristol Record Society, 2024.

Summary:

William Cole, a gentleman without income, supported himself and his dependent family thanks to a post in the Customs Service. He was also an ardent naturalist and strongly providentialist. His addiction to studying the natural world went back to his youth (he was born c. 1622); his service in the Customs to the 1660s. He was appointed to Bristol in 1668. How he became acquainted with the diplomat and civil servant, Commissioner of the Customs, Robert Southwell, is unknown, but Southwell became his protector and correspondent in matters of natural history in which he also had a strong, if amateur, interest. The letters exchanged between them over some eighteen years offer an insight into the pleasures and difficulties of pursuing natural history in a provincial setting, and of the advantages that Cole's position in the port brought him for collecting exotic specimens. They show the importance to Cole in his official career of Southwell's protection, and also the reciprocity that was expected in a client-patron relationship. For the technical history of science they reveal the multiplicity of ideas prevalent, for Cole espoused the doctrine of non-sexual, spontaneous generation in a period when the idea was increasingly under attack. At the same time they show the intricacy of marriage negotiations as Cole attempted to broker an alliance for the Southwells, reveal something of the dissensions among customs officers in Bristol port, and display the religious beliefs of a slightly unusual, 'ordinary' man. inside front cover

Contents:

Introduction

The correspondence

Published and unpublished scientific papers by Cole

Appendix of related documents

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780901538512

0901538515

OCLC:

1477191862