PEARSON 



6O2O 



PEASANTS' WAR 



Charles H. Pearson, 

 British historian 



Pearson, CHAKLES HENBY (1830 

 -94). British historian. Born in 

 London, Sept. 7, 1830, he was edu- 

 cated at Rug- 

 by, King's Col- 

 lege, London, 

 and Exeter Col - 

 I e g e, Oxford. 

 He became, in 

 1855, lecturer 

 and then pro- 

 fessor of history 

 at King's Col- 

 lege, resigning 

 in 1865. He 

 wrote for the press and travelled, 

 and for two years lectured at Trin- 

 ity College, Cambridge, before 1871, 

 when he went to Australia, where 

 he lectured at the university of 

 Melbourne. In 1875 he entered the 

 legislature of Victoria, and from 

 1886-90 was minister of education, 

 carrying out very important re- 

 forms. Pearson's great work was 

 his National Life and Character. 



1893, pessimistic as regards the 

 future of the white man. Earlier, 

 his Early and Middle Ages of Eng- 

 land, 1861, had aroused contro- 

 versy. He died in London, May 29, 



1894. See Autobiography, 1900. 

 Pearson, SIR CYRIL ARTHUR 



(1866-1921). British newspaper 

 proprietor. Born Feb. 24, 1866, at 

 Wookey, Som- 

 ersetshire, son 

 of the Rev. A. 

 Cyril Pearson, 

 he was edu- 

 cated at Win- 

 chester. He be- 

 gan journalism 

 as sub-editor 

 of Tit-Bits, 

 founded Pear- 

 s o n's Weekly 

 in 1890, Home 

 Notes in 1894, Pearson's Magazine 

 in 1896, and The Daily Express 

 (q.v.) in 1900. Later he acquired a 

 controlling interest in The St. 

 James's Gazette and in several 

 papers in Birmingham, New- 

 castle, and Leicester. In Nov., 

 1904, he acquired The Stand- 

 ard and The Evening Standard, 

 and amalgamated with the last 

 named The St. James's Gazette. 

 Overtaken by blindness, he retired 

 from journalism in 1912 and de- 

 voted himself to the welfare of 

 those similarly afflicted, especially 

 of soldiers and sailors, organizing 

 St. Dunstan's Hostel (q.v.). He 

 was made a baronet in 1916 and 

 a G.B.E. in 1917. He wrote 

 Victory over Blindness, 1919, and 

 contributed the article on the train- 

 ing of the blind to this Encyclo- 

 pedia. He died Dec. 9, 1921. 



Pearson, JOHN (1613-86). Eng- 

 lish divine. He was born at Great 

 Snoring, Norfolk, Feb. 28, 1613, 



Sir C. A. Pearson, 



British newspaper 



proprietor 



John Pearson, 

 English divine 



and educated at Eton and King's 

 College, Cambridge, of which he 

 became a fellow. In 1640 he was 

 appointed rec- 

 tor of Thoring- 

 ton. In 1654 

 he became 

 weekly preach- 

 er at S. Clem- 

 ent's, E a s t- 

 cheap, London, 

 and there de- 

 livered the ser- 

 mons which in 

 1659 he pub- 

 lished under the title of An Exposi- 

 tion of the Creed. This scholarly 

 work (see ed. by Sinker, 1882) is a 

 classic of Anglican divinity. In 

 1660 Pearson became master of 

 Jesus College, Cambridge, in 1661 

 Lady Margaret professor of divin- 

 ity, in 1662 master of Trinity Col- 

 lege, and in 1673 bishop of Chester, 

 where he died July 16, 1686. 



Pearson, KARL (b.1857). British 

 scientist. Educated at University 

 College School, London, and King's 

 College, Cambridge, he was called 

 to the bar at the Inner Temple, 

 1882. His interests, however, 

 were in the direction of scientific 

 inquiry, and he studied the theories 

 of evolution and heredity, especi- 

 ally from the mathematical stand- 

 point. He became professor of 

 eugenics and director of the 

 laboratory of national eugenics 

 in the university of London. Pear- 

 son's writings include The Chances 

 of Death and other Studies in 

 Evolution, 1897 ; Tables for Statis- 

 ticians, 1914 ; The Life and Letters 

 of Francis Galton, 1914. 



Peary, ROBERT EDWIN (1856- 

 1920). American explorer. Born 

 May 6, 1856, he entered the U.S. 

 navy as a civil 

 engineer in 

 1881, and was 

 employed in 

 the survey of 

 the proposed 

 Nicaragua 

 Ship Canal. 

 Arctic explor- 

 ation had long 

 been his study 

 when in 1891- 

 92 he carried out a sledging expe- 

 dition of 1,300 m. from McCormick 

 Bay to the N.E. coast of Greenland. 

 Other voyages followed between 

 1893-97 ; in 1898 he surveyed 

 and charted the coast N. of Green- 

 land, and in 1902 and 1905 he made 

 attempts to reach the Pole. In 1908 

 he began the voyage which led to 

 the discovery of the N. Pole, April 

 6, 1909. Promoted rear-admiral, 

 1911, he died at Washington, 

 Feb. 19, 1920. See Arctic ^Ex- 

 ploration ; Cook, F. A. ; consult 

 also North Pole, R. E. Peary, 1910. 



R. E. Peary, 

 American explorer 



Peary Land. Desolate ice-bound 

 tract of N. Greenland. It was dis- 

 covered by Lockwood and Brainard 

 in 1882. The neighbouring fiords 

 were explored in Rasmussen's 

 second Thule expedition, 1916-17. 

 It was named after Peary, the ex- 

 plorer, who spent a considerable 

 period in surveying this region. 



Peasantry (Fr. paysan, from 

 Lat. pagensis, countryman). Gene- 

 ral term for the rural population of 

 a country labouring on the land 

 for wn>ges, or holding and tilling 

 small plots of land for themselves. 

 See Allotment ; Labourer ; Me- 

 tayer System ; Small-holdings. 



Peasants' Revolt. Rising of 

 the peasantry in England in 1381. 

 There was at this time much dis- 

 content due to the enactment of 

 the statute of labourers, a conse- 

 quence of the Black Death, and to 

 other causes. The imposition of a 

 poll-tax brought matters to a head. 

 On May 30 there was an outbreak 

 at Brentwood. On June 2 a more 

 serious movement began. In Kent 

 Wat Tyler, supported by John Ball, 

 appeared as its leader. 



Maidstone and Dartford were 

 centres of disorder, while Essex and 

 other eastern counties were also in 

 revolt. Manor houses and manor 

 rolls were destroyed, lawyers sin- 

 gled out for vengeance. The 

 Kentish and Essex rebels marched 

 to London, burned the prisons and 

 other buildings in Southwark, 

 crossed London Bridge, and mur- 

 dered Simon of Sudbury, arch- 

 bishop of Canterbury, and the 

 treasurer, Sir Robert Hales. At 

 Mile End Richard II met them and 

 persuaded some of them to go 

 home. Next day, June 15, there 

 was another meeting at Smith- 

 field, where Tyler was stabbed by 

 the lord mayor, but Richard 

 quieted his followers, who dis- 

 persed on the strength of his pro- 

 mise that their grievances should 

 be removed. This, however, was 

 not kept. Meanwhile, the Norfolk 

 rebels had been crushed at N. Wai- 

 sham by the bishop of Norwich. 

 See England : History ; Tyler, W. ; 

 consult also Rising in E. Anglia in 

 1381, E. Powell, 1895 ; The Great 

 Revolt of 1381, C. Oman, 1906. 



Peasants' War. Rising of the 

 peasantry which took place in 

 Germany in 1522-25. Due mainly 

 to economic causes, it broke out 

 in the Black Forest area. The 

 rising, however, spread to Fran- 

 conia, and was especially successful 

 in Thuringia. Roused to action, the 

 princes collected an army, and, led 

 by Philip of Hesse, defeated the 

 Thuringian rebels at Franken- 

 hausen in May, 1535, their leader, 

 Thomas Miinzer, being killed. 

 See Germany : History. 



