The History of Lynn, Vol. 2 [of 2]Richards, William
History
The History of Lynn, Vol. 2 [of 2]
Richards, William
Fens, The (England); King's Lynn (England)
Opuscula varia utriusque Linguæ Medicinam, 4to 1765—2.
a Farewell Oration, 1768, 4to—3. Fragmentum Isaaci Hawkins Browne
completum, 1769, 4to—4. Appendix ad Opuscula; six odes, 1770, 4to—5.
A proposal on our Coin, to remedy all present and prevent all future
disorders 1774, 4to—6. A New years Gift, 1772—7. Corrections in
verse, from the father of the College, 4to—8. Speech to the Royal
Society, 1772—9. An Eulogy and address, 1773—10. a Latin version of
Job, left unfinished, 4to.”
From the above sketch the reader will perceive that Sir William Browne
was a person of no common cast, or ordinary genius. Men of his sort are
not to be seen every day: and when they do appear they are sure to
attract observation, and are apt to make a stir wherever they happen to
fix their residence. Sir William was at the head of the party which
opposed the ruling body here for most part of his long residence in this
town: and he appears to have acted his part with no small skill and
dexterity, and with considerable effect. When the squabble assumed any
thing of a literary aspect, Dr. Pyle seems to have been his chief
opponent. At other times he had the whole corporate body at him, and it
must be said that he generally defended himself and repelled the attacks
of the whole host of those philistines very stoutly and successfully.
There is great reason to believe that the opposition which he and his
friends so long maintained here, was often of real and not small service
to the town. At the contested election in, 1747, he bore a very
conspicuous part, as appears from Dr. Pyle’s Letter already quoted. The
part he acted on that occasion is supposed to have laid the foundation of
that intimacy between him and Mr. Folkes which issued in an alliance
between the two families, by the marriage of that gentleman with Sir
William’s only daughter and sole heiress. The issue of that marriage is
our present Sir Martin; and Sir Martin’s Lady is the daughter of that
same Sir John Turner, between whom and Sir William Browne there was such
inveterate and sworn enmity. After the Church was rebuilt in 1747, great
complaints were made of the unfair disposal of pews, &c. so as to exclude
in a great measure the common people from the privilege of sitting within
hearing of the minister. Sir William was one of those who set their
faces against this grievance. How far he and his coadjutors succeeded in
obtaining redress does not appear. But whether they succeeded or not,
the part they then acted was proper and praise-worthy. Our worthy
knight, no doubt, performed many other deeds that were equally
commendable, and others, it seems, that were not so. Among the leading
traits of his character have been reckoned undaunted assurance and
consummate vanity. {1037} He died at his house in Queen Square, whence
his grandson, Sir Martin, had his remains brought down to Hillington, and
there buried in the family vault belonging to that gentleman’s ancestors.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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