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WOLKOMYSK, a town of Lithuania, in the palati- 

 nate of Novogrodek ; 40 miles W.S.W. of Novogrodek. 



WOLLACOMB Bay, a bay of England, on the weft 

 coaft of Devonlhire, fituated to the north of Barnftaple 



bay. 



WOLLAPALLAM, a town of Hindooftan ; 10 miles 



E. of Coimbetore. 



WOLLASTON, William, in Biography, an ethical 

 writer, was born in 1659 at Cotton Clanford, in Stafford- 

 fhire, and finilhed his education as a penfioner of Sidney 

 college, Cambridge. In 1681 he commenced M.A. and 

 entered into deacon's orders. His firft fettlement was as 

 an affiftant in the free fchool at Birmingham, to which a 

 fmall lefturelhip was annexed ; and about four years after- 

 wards he was advanced from this laborious fituation to 

 the ofBce of fecond mafter in the fame fchool. In 1688 

 a relation died, whofe deceafe put him in poffefilon of a 

 confiderable landed eftate, upon which he removed to Lon- 

 don, and marrying a lady of confiderable fortune, he re- 

 fided in Charterhoufe-fquare. Difmifling all thoughts of 

 church preferment, he devoted himfelf to the retirement of 

 private life and to a courfe of ftudy, comprehending the 

 learned languages, together with Hebrew and Arabic. The 

 firft publication which iffued from the prefs was a poem 

 on Ecclefiaftes, which he would afterwards have fupprefied, 

 from a conviftion that his talents were not adapted to poetry. 

 In the progrefs of his life and literary purfuits, he was fo much 

 amufed by compofition, that he wrote many treatifes on various 

 fubjefts, both in Latin and Englilh, which he committed to 

 the flames. Of the well-known work which has perpetuated 

 his name, and which is intitled " The Religion of Nature 

 delineated," he printed a few copies to be diftnbuted among 

 his friends in 1722, but his declining health prevented his 

 completing his original defign. However, in 1723 he was 

 prevailed upon to revife what he had printed for publication, 

 and it accordingly appeared in 1724, in which year he died, 

 at the age of 65, leaving a large family, and having loft his 

 wife, to whom he was affeftionately attached, about four 

 years before. In his private charafter he is faid to have 

 exemphfied the virtues which his work inculcated. The 

 fyftem which he developed, and which founded morality 

 upon «' truth," excited much attention, and his book, 

 though not written in a popular manner, paffed through 

 feven editions to the year 1750. The laft of thefe editions 

 includes an appendix, confifting of a tranflation of the Latin 

 notes by Dr. J. Clarke, dean of Sahfbury, undertaken at 

 the particular requeft of queen Caroline, who was a great 

 admirer of the work. Dr. Warburton, in his ftriftures on 

 WoUafton's theory in his Divine Legation, honours the 

 author by ranking him as " one of our moft celebrated 

 writers," and compliments him with having " demonftrated 

 with greater clearnefs than any before him the natural efien- 

 tial difference of things ;" and though modern fyftems have 

 in a confiderable degree antiquated that of Mr. Wollatton, 

 the author muft always be regarded as a man of extenfive 

 learning and ifrong reafoning powers. Biog. Brit. 



WdLLERSDORF, in Geography, a town of Ger- 

 many, in the margravate of Anlpach ; 10 miles E. of 

 Anfpach. 



WOLLERSTORFF, a town of Auftria ; 5 miles 

 W.N.W. of Neuftatt. 



WOLLIEN, a town of Brandenburg, in the Ucker 

 Mark ; 10 miles E.S.E. of Prenzlow. 



WOLLIN, a town of Anterior Pomerania, on the eaft 

 coaft of the ifland fo called, feparated from the continent 

 of Pomerania by the river Direnow, over which is a bridge, 

 jl which all travellers pay a toll. In this town are a feat and 



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prefetlurate. It ftands on the fcite of the ancient city of 

 Julin, which was formerly fo famous for its commerce, 

 though its origin is very obfcure. The firft mention of 

 this city in hiftory occurs immediately after the time of 

 Charlemagne ; and in the i ith century its profperity was 

 fuch, that Adam Von Bremen fpeaks of it a« the largeft 

 city at that time in Europe. So early as the records of the 

 1 2th century, it is called Wolin. In the year 1 127, it was 

 fet on fire by lightning, and being built of wood, was en- 

 tirely confumed. The Pomeranian bifhopric, which had 

 been erefted there but two years before, was tranflated 

 upon that to Ufedom, but on the rebuilding of the city, 

 was reftored to it. In the year 1 1 70, being taken by Wol- 

 demar I. king of Denmark, and Jaromar I. prince of Ru- 

 gen, it was facked and burned ; and after retrieving this cala- 

 mity was, in the year 1175, ''g'''" ^'^^ °f ^-^t s^'l utterly 

 deftroyed, infomuch that in the very fame year the duke of 

 Pomerania removed the bifhopric to Cammin. It was in- 

 deed rebuilt again, but never recovered its former greitnefs ; 

 25 miles N. of Old Stettin. N. lat. 53° 48'. E. long. 



14° 35'- 



WoLLiN, an ifland formed at the mouth of the Oder, 



between the Baltic and the Frifclie HafF; th? form of an 

 irregular triangle, about thirty miles in circurr.ference. This 

 ifland is frequently in danger of being overflowed, and the 

 fea-winds hurt it confiderably, by throwing up drifts of 

 fand. It produces excellent cattle, with plenty of game 

 and fifh ; and one part of it, called the Fritter, is remark- 

 able for the great quantity of eels taken there. Befides 

 the town of WoUin, it contains feveral villages. 



WOLLO, a town of Africa, on the Ivory Coaft. 



WOLLY. See Woolli. 



WOLMIRSTADT, a town of Weftpha'.ia, in the 

 duchy of Magdeburg. In the year 1642, this town was 

 fet on fire by the Imperial troops ; 10 miles N. of Magde- 

 burg. N. lat. 52° 18'. E. long. 1 1° 45'. 



WOLMSDORF, or Wonsdorf, a town of Pruffia, 

 in the province of Smaland ; 24 miles S.E. of Konigfberg. 



WOLNITZ, a town of Saxony, in the principality of 

 Eifenach ; 2 miles S. of Jena. 



WOLNZACH, a town of Bavaria; 6 miles N.E. of 

 PfaflFenhofen. 



WOLPA, a town of Lithuania, in the palatinate of 

 Novogrodek ; 54 miles W. of Novogrodek. 



WOLPAFFING, a town of Auftria ; 4 miles S.S.E. 

 of Weikerfdorf. 



WOLSDORFF, a town of the duchy of Bremen ; 5 

 miles S. of Carlftadt. 



WOLSEY, orWuLCEY, Thomas, cardinal, in j?«o^ra/Ay, 

 was the fon of a butcher at Ipfwich, Suffolk, and born there 

 in 147 1. He finiihed his education at Magdalen college, 

 Oxford, and was graduated B.A. at the age of 15. He 

 was afterwards fellow of his college, and having taken the 

 degree of M.A. became mafter of the fchool dependent upon 

 that college, where he had under his tuition three fons of 

 the marquis of Dorfet, by whom he was prefented to the 

 reftory of Lymington in Som^rfetfliire, into which he was 

 indutled in 1500. His advancement was rapid, firft as do- 

 meftic chaplain to the archbifhop of Canterbury,and afterwards 

 as chaplain to the houiehold of Henry VII. His manners were 

 infinuating, and he became the confidante of the king, who 

 communicated to him his prcjefted marriage with the daugh- 

 ter of the emperor Maximihan. Wolfey met the emperor 

 at Bruges, and executed his commiffion fo much to the king's 

 fatisfadlion, that he nominated him to the deanery of Lin- 

 coln. After the death of Henry VII. he was recommended 

 by Fox, bilhop of Winchefter, to Henry VIII., whofe 



favour 



