154 Letters, Extracts, Notices, &^c. 



William Turner, naturalist, physician, and divine, was 

 born about the year 1500, at Morpeth, in Northumberland. 

 He was educated under the patronage of Thomas Went- 

 worth, and became a member, and afterwards a Fellow, of 

 Pembroke Hall. He graduated as Bachelor of Arts in 

 1829-30, and was admitted to deacon^s orders about 1536. 

 At Cambridge Turner early evinced an. inclination to the 

 study of plants, and complained bitterly that he " could 

 learn never one Greke, neither Latin, nor English name, 

 even amongst the physicians^ of any herbe or tree.'^ In the 

 prosecution of this study he was led to an acquaintance with 

 other departments of natural history, and his knowledge of 

 the birds and fishes of this country was both intimate and 

 exact. On quitting Cambridge Turner, " agreeably to the 

 practice of many others, united the character of the divine 

 with that of physician." He felt constrained to embrace the 

 principles of the Reformers, and his zeal evoked the dis- 

 pleasure of Bishop Gardiner, who caused him to be thrown 

 into prison. On being released he submitted to voluntary- 

 exile during the reign of Henry VIII., and resided at various 

 towns in Holland, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, At 

 Ferrara he received the degree of Doctor of Physic. At 

 Zurich he met the celebrated Conrad Gesner, and between 

 the two a warm friendship sprang up. From Cologne he 

 issued his commentary upon the birds mentioned by Pliny 

 and Aristotle, the title of which is printed above. In the 

 same year he also caused to be printed the ^Dialogus de 

 Avibus^ of Gybertus Longolius or Longueil {nat. 1507, ob. 

 1543), physician to Hermann, Archbishop of Cologne, to 

 whom Turner dedicated the work. On the accession of 

 Edward VI. he returned to England and was appointed 

 physician to the Lord Protector^ and Dean of Wells. During 

 the next reign he again resided abroad, but Elizabeth re- 

 instated him in his preferments, and to her he dedicated the 

 complete edition of his ' Herbal ' in 1568, acknowledging 

 with gratitujie her favours in protecting him from manifold 

 troubles. 



Turner died at Crutched Friars on the 7th of July, 1568, 



