17(> 
P A C E. 
in the cleareft fky I ever faw, by whole folemn light I 
paced on fiowly without interruption. Pope. 
He Toft arrived on the graflie plain, 
And fairly paced forth with eafy pain. Speiifer. 
The nymph, obedient to divine command, 
T@ leek Ulyfles, pac'd along the fand. Pope. 
To move; 
Remember well, with fpeed fo puce, 
To fpeak of Perdita. Shakefpeare's Wint. Tale. 
To PACE, v. a. To meafure by fteps: 
Where is the horfe that doth untread again 
His tedious meafures with th’ unbated fire 
That he d'd pace them firft ? S/iahefpeare. 
To direft to go; to regulate in motion : 
If you can, pace your wifdom 
In that good path that I would wifli it go, 
And you fhall have your bofom on this wretch. S/iahefp. 
PACE, or Paice (Richard), a learned Englilh pried 
and eminent fiatefman, was born about the year 1482, at 
or near the city of Winchefter, as is generally fuppofed. 
He was educated at the expenfe of Thomas Langton, 
bifhop of that diocefe, who employed him, while yet a 
youth, in the capacity of his amanuenfis. By the profi¬ 
ciency which Pace made in learning, and the genius 
which he dilcovered for mufic, he recommended himfelf 
to the good graces of his patron, who generoufly deter¬ 
mined to afFord him the bed advantages for literary im¬ 
provement. For this purpofe he fent him to the univer- 
fity of Padua, at that time the mod famous feminary of 
literature in Europe, with a handfome allowance to de¬ 
fray his expenfes. In this place he was much affided in 
the profecution of his ftudies by Cuthbert Tondall, af¬ 
terwards bidiop of Durham, and by William Latimer. 
After his return to England, he went to Queen’s College, 
Oxford, of which his patron, bifhop Langton, had been 
proved; and he was there foon taken into the fervice of 
Dr. Bainbridge, the fucceffor of Langton in the provoft- 
fitip. This patron, who was promoted to the archbifhop- 
rjc of York, and made a cardinal, he accompanied to 
ItJi'ly, where Bainbridge was poifoned by a pried, out of 
revenge for having received a blow from him in the mo¬ 
ment of pailion. Of the manner of the cardinal’s death, 
and of the meafures which were taken to difeover thofe 
who were concerned in it, Pace tranfmitted to king 
Henry VIII. a particular account. Upon his return home, 
■he was fent for to court, where his talents and accom- 
plifhments recommended him fo powerfully to the king, 
that he appointed him fecretary of date, and employed 
him in various important negociations, and foreign em- 
bafiies. His being engaged in date-ad’airs, however, did 
pot prevent him from entering into holy orders; and, in 
the year 1514, he was fird made prebendary of York, and 
afterwards archdeacon of Dorfet. In 1515, Henry VIII. 
being alarmed at the progrefs which the arms of Francis I. 
king of France, were making in Italy, fent Pace on an 
embafty to the court of Vienna, for the purpofe of en¬ 
gaging the emperor Maximilian, by the payment of con- 
fiderable fums of money, to attempt the expulfion of the 
French from the duchy of Milan. Having prevailed upon 
him to embark in that undertaking, Pace went intoSwif- 
ferland, where, by the fame means of perfuafion he in¬ 
duced feme of the cantons to furnifh Maximilian with 
troops. After the failure of this expedition, and the 
conclufion of peace between the French king and the 
emperor, the latter, who was very necefiitous, made a 
propofal of refigning the imperial crown in Henry’s fa¬ 
vour; but Pace, who was perfectly acquainted with the 
emperor’s motives and character, gave the king timely 
warning that the foie view of that prince in making fuch 
a liberal od’er, was to draw money from him. In the year 
1519, upon the death of the emperor, when the Kings of 
France and Spain declared themfelves candidates for the 
imperial throne, Henry determined to become their com¬ 
petitor, and fent Pace his ambafiador into Germany, to 
watch over his interefts at the diet of the empire. On this 
occafion he was loaded with careftes by the German 
princes and the pope’s nuncio; but he was foon fenfible 
that he could hope for no fuccefs in a claim which he had 
been fo late in preferring; and Henry’s vanity led him to 
confole himfelf for his difappointment, by imputing it to 
that circumftauce alone. Pace’s fervices were rewarded 
in the fame year with the deanery of St. Paul’s, London, 
in fucceffion to Dr. Colet; and about the fame time he 
was made dean of Exeter. 
In the year 1521, our author was prefented to a pre- 
bendal flail in the church of Sarum ; and, upon the death 
of pope Leo X. towards the clofe of that year, cardinal 
Wolfey fent him with proper inftrtuSlions to Rome, be¬ 
lieving that he had a favourable opportunity of offering 
himfelf a candidate for the papal chair. Before Pace’s ar¬ 
rival at Rome, however, the eledlion had taken place; 
and Adrian bifhop of Tortofa, formerly preceptor to the 
emperor Charles V. had been chofen pope. Upon the 
death of that pontiff, in 1523, Pace was employed to ne- 
gociate a fecond time on Wolfey’s behalf; but with no 
better fuccefs than before, the fuffrages of the conclave 
being given to Clement VII. Unable to obtain the grand 
objedl of his ambition, the cardinal employed Pace in foii- 
citing from the pope an enlargement of his legatine powers, 
which his holinefs deemed it good policy to grant. Af¬ 
terwards, Pace was fent ambafiador to Venice, where he ac¬ 
quitted himfelf with great ability and fuccefs, fo “ that 
it is hard to fay,” obferves Wood, “ whether he procured 
more commendation or admiration among the Venetians, 
both for dexterity of his wit, and efpecially for the An¬ 
gular promptnefs in the Italian tongue.” But, notwith- 
llanding the abilities with which he fuftained his cha- 
ra£ter as ambafiador, Wolfey conceived a difpieafure 
againft him, of which he experienced the bitter effects. 
For two years the amtmfiador received no inftrudfions 
from the king or council relative to the objects of his 
appointments, nor any remittances for the fupport of his 
expenfes, notwithftanding the repeated applications which 
he made to England. Pace alfo received private inftruc- 
tions from his friends at home, that the cardinal had be¬ 
come inveterately hoftile to him. This ufage and intel¬ 
ligence had fuch an etfefl upon Pace, that he fell fick, and 
loft his intelleits. Information of his condition having 
been brought to the king, he immediately gave directions 
for his being brought home; where he was fo carefully 
attended by phyficians, at the king’s command, that his 
faculties were in a confiderable degree reftored, and he 
was able to direft his attention to literary purfuits. Soon 
after this, while the cardinal was abfent from court, Pace’s 
friends found means to introduce him to the king, then 
refiding at Richmond; who exprefled much fatisfaCtion 
at his recovery, and admitted him to a private audience, 
in which he took the opportunity of remonftrating againft 
the cardinal’s unjuft treatment of him. Wolfey, being 
called upon by Henry to vindicate himfelf againft this 
charge, well knew how to manage his influence, fo as to 
obtain an eafy victory over the humble complainant. He 
fummoned Pace before him; and, “ fitting in judgment,” 
fays Wood, “ with the duke of Norfolk, and other ftates 
of the realm, not as a defendant, but as a judge in his 
own caufe, did fo bear out himfelf, and weigh down Pace, 
that he was forthwith commanded to the Tower of Lon¬ 
don as prifoner; where he continuing for the fpace of 
two years, or thereabout, was at length by the king’s 
command difeharged.” Pace’s malady was fo much in- 
creafed by the cruel and unjuft treatment which he met 
with, that, during the time of his imprifonment, and after 
his releafe, he never recovered his fenfes, excepting at 
intervals. He reiigned his deaneries of St. Paul and 
Exeter a little before his death ; and, retiring to Stepney, 
breathed his laft there in 1532, when he was not quite 
fifty years of age. 
Pace 
