KEN 



Oxford to a Friend in the Country concerning tlie approach- 

 ing Parliament, in Vindication of his Majefly, the Church of 

 England, and the Univcrlity." It was written in defence 

 of court mpa-rures, and fnpportcd principles which he re- 

 nounced in his matiirer years. The Whig party in jiarlia- 

 ment were fo much offended with it, that enquiries were 

 made after the author, in order to get him punifliL-d, but the 

 fuddcn diffolution of parliament prefcrved him from the ef- 

 feiits of their rcfentmcnt. Mr. Kennett took his degree of 

 B.A. in 16S2, and in the following year he publi(hed an 

 Englift tran.flation of Erafmus's " Morise Encomium ;"' en- 

 titled " Wit againlt Wifdom, or a Panegyric upon Folly." 

 He entered into holy orders about the year 16S4, and in the 

 following year he was prefentcd to the vicarage of Amerf- 

 den, in Oxford, by fir William Glynne, to whom he dedicated 

 " An Addrefs of Thanks to a good Prince, prefented in the 

 Panegyric of PHuy upon Trajan, the bell of Roman Empe- 

 rors." Mr. Kennett diftinguifliedhimfelfby preacliiiigagainil 

 Popery, though he did not engage in the famous Popifh con- 

 troverfy. WTiile he was out on a {hooting party, he received 

 a dangerous wound on his head, which obliged him to un- 

 dergo the operation of trepanning : he, however, foon reco- 

 vered, and was chofen lefturer at St. Martin's, Oxford : he 

 washkcwifechofen tutor and vice-principal at Edmund Hall, 

 where he lived in terms of friendfliip with the principal Dr. 

 John Mill, wh.o was at this time employed in preparing for 

 the prefs his celebrated edition of the New Teftament. In 

 1693, he obtained tiie rectory of Shottefbrook, in Berkfhire, 

 and, in 1695,116 commenced D.D., and in the following year 

 was prefentcd to the living of St. Boltolph, Aldgate, having 

 been already appointed arch-deacon of Lincoln. In 1701 

 he engaged in a controverfy on the rights of the convocation 

 againil Dr. Atterbury. In 1705, upon the advancement of 

 Dr. Wake to the fee of Lincoln, Dr. Kennett was appointed 

 to preach his confccration fermon ; which was publilhed at the 

 defire cf the archbifhops andbi(hops,and was greatly admired 

 by lord chief juftice Holt, who declared that it contained 

 more to the purpofe of the legal and Chriftian conftitution of 

 the church of England than any volume of difcourfes. In 1707 

 he was made dean of Peterborough, but he was growing very 

 unpopular on account of his Whig principles andhisoppofition 

 to Dr. Sacheverel : ncverthelefs, in the fame year, he was 

 allowed £0 exchani^ehis living in Aldgate for the reftory 

 of St. Mary Aldermary, in order that he might have more 

 leifure for Rudy and retirement. The zeal whicivdean Ken- 

 nett difplaycd in oppofiticn to the claims of the high church 

 clergy, and the fcntiments of moderation which he difcovered 

 towards the Diflenters, as well as his attachment to the Pro- 

 tellant fuccefiion, and the interells of civil Hberty, rendered 

 him very obnoxious to the Tories, who took every method in 

 their power to expofe him, one of which was devifed by Dr. 

 Wilton, reftor of Whitechapel, who was afterwards de- 

 prived of his living as a nonjuror. This clergyman prefent- 

 iiig a new altar-piece, rcprefenting the Laft Supper, to his 

 church, caufed the figure intended for Judas Ifcariot to be 

 drawn as a likenefs of the dean of Peterborough, with a_black 

 patch on his head, fimilar to one which Dr. Kennett wore 

 on the wound which he had formerly received. It was foon 

 known for whom the caricature was intended, and peo- 

 ple came in crowds to fee it. But by all moderate people of 

 both parties, it was regarded as an infolent and profane profti- 

 tution of what was intended for the moft facred ufes, and the 

 biftiop of London, without any interference on the part of 

 the dean, ordered it to be taken down. After theacceffion 

 of king George I., and when a rebellion was breaking out 

 in Scotland, he preached with the utmoU boldncfs in de- 

 fence of the prefent fettlcmcnt of the government of the 



KEN 



houfe of Hanover : he ufed to fay, he was ready to live or die 

 in defence of the glorious principles of the Revolution, and 

 that he would go out to figlit, when he could no longer preach 

 in defence of them. He warmly oppofed tlie proceed- 

 ings in the convocation againft Dr. Hoadly, bifliop of Ban- 

 gor, on whole fide he was deeply engaged in the Bangorian 

 controverfy. His zeal in the caufe of civil and religions li- 

 berty was, in the year 1718, rewarded by the bilhopric of 

 Peterborough, which he enjoyed ten years. He died in 

 1728, in the fixty-ninth year cf his age. His principal 

 works arc, I. "The Life of William Somner," which 

 was prefixed to Mr. Bron.e's edition of the famous 

 antiquary's " Treatifc of the Roman Ports and Forts 

 in Kent." 2. A coUetlion of Englifh hillorians, under 

 the title of "The Coni))lite Hillory of England," in three ■ 

 vols, folio, the laft of which was written by himfelf. 

 3. " Hiftorical Account of Appropriations." Bifliop Ken- 

 nett fuftains a confiderable ra:.k in the epifcopal order for 

 learning and abilities, He was deejily read in Englifh hif- 

 tory and antiquities, though he was by no means dehcicnt in 

 that kind of knowledge which was the more immediate 

 bufinefs of his profeffion. He was anxious to difchsirgc the 

 duties of his miniiferial funflions with credit to himfelt, and 

 advantage to thofe who were the inuucdiate fubjcfts of his 

 paftoral care ; nor did the high rank to which he attained lead 

 him to yegle£l the duties of a parifh-priefl^. He was accef- 

 fible and communicative, a true friend, as well as an admir- 

 able pattern to his clorgy, and thofe of them who dillin- 

 guifhed themfelves either by their learning, or by a zealous 

 difcharge of their parochial duties, were fure of his refpect. 

 and encouragement. 



Kennett, Basil, younger brother of the above, was 

 born at Poflling, in Kent, in 1674, and educated at Corpus 

 Chrifti college, Oxford. In 1696, he publifl-.ed " Romx 

 Antique Notitia, or the Antiqi:itii,s of Rome," a work that 

 for a century was generally uled in our clatTical fclicols. In 

 the following year he gave to the public " The Lives and 

 Charafters of the Ancient Greek Poets ;" and he was about 

 the fame tir.ie eletled a fellow of his college, and entered into 

 orders. He was author likewife of " An Expofition of the 

 Apoftles' Creed, according to Bifhop Pearfon," and^ " An 

 Effay towards a Paraphrafe on the Pfaims in Verfe, with 

 a Paraphrafe on the third Chapter of Revelations." In 

 1706, he was appointed chaplain to the Englifli fattory at 

 Leghorn ; in this office he condufted himfelf with fo much 

 prudence and propriety that he acquired univcrfal edeem, 

 even from the Catholics, wha had ufed every effort to pre- 

 vent his officiating in that capacity. In 1 7 14, he returned to 

 England, and commenced D.D., but died in a few months 

 afterwards. A volume of his fcrmons, prepared for the prefs 

 during his life, was publilhed in the year 1715. Biog. Brit. 

 KENNICOTT, Benj.-\min, a learned Englifh divine, 

 and oriental fcholar, was. born at Totnefs, in Dcvonihire, in 

 the year 17 18. . His father was mailer of a charity-fchool 

 in that place, and the fon fucceeded to the employment at a 

 very early age. While in this fituation his talents were 

 difcovered, and a fubfcription entered into, in order to pro- 

 cure him the advantages of an academical education. He 

 accordingly was entered of Wadham college, Oxford, where 

 he foon dillinguifhed himfelf in that department of ftudy in 

 which he afterwards became fo eminent. He commenced 

 his career as an author while he was an under-graduate, by 

 publilhing two diifertations ; the firfl " On the Tree of Life 

 in Paradife, with fome Obfervations on the Fall of Man ;'' 

 the fecbnd " On the Oblation of Cain and Abel." This 

 work procured the author the extraordinary honour of having 

 the degree of B.A. conferred on him by the univerfity a year 



before 



