John Speed (The Historian)

John Speed

• Birth: 1552
• Death: Jul. 28, 1629

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Speed

Cartographer. Born in Farndon, Cheshire, England, the son of a tailor. At about age eighteen, Speed was admitted to the Merchant Tailor's Company in London. He married two years later and would eventually father twelve sons and six daughters. While working in London, Speed developed a strong interest in history, particularly antiquities and genealogies. His first cartographical work, a four sheet wall map of Canaan in Biblical Times, was published in 1595. His interests led him into academic circles and he joined the Society of Antiquaries. At the age of 48, Speed’s talent was encouraged by Sir Fulke Greville, who gave Speed an allowance to enable him shift his career from tailor to researcher and cartographer. His ‘Historie of Great Britaine’ was published in 1611 along with his atlas ‘The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine’ which contained the first set of individual county maps of England and Wales as well as maps of Ireland and a general map of Scotland. Two years before his death Speed published ‘A Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World’ which was the first world atlas produced by an Englishman. His health then failed rapidly as he suffered from apparently progressive blindness and other ailments. He died at age 77 and a monument at St. Giles, in Cripplegate was erected to him in the church, comprised of a bust, flanked by two stone doors with inscriptions. Damaged during the Blitz, only the bust now survives. (bio by: Iola)

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Burial: St Giles Cripplegate Churchyard London Greater London, England

Maintained by: Find A Grave Record added: Jan 07, 1999 Find A Grave Memorial# 4316

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JOHN SPEED, I, of London, England, the historian, geographer and antiquarian was b. at Farrington, County Cheshire, England, 1552. His great work was the "History of England" with accompanying maps. He was buried in the chancel of the Church of St. Giles, Cripplegate, London, where a monument stands over his grave. The remains of John MILTON rest in the same church.

Speed was born at Farndon, Cheshire, and went into his father's tailoring business where he worked until he was about 50. While working in London, his knowledge of history led him into learned circles and he joined the Society of Antiquaries where his interests came to the attention of Sir Fulke Greville, who subsequently made him an allowance to enable him to devote his whole attention to research. As a reward for his earlier efforts, Queen Elizabeth granted Speed the use of a room in the Custom House.

He is buried with his wife in St Giles-without-Cripplegate church within the Barbican Estate in the City of London. A memorial to John Speed was also erected behind the altar of the church. According to the church's website, "[His was] one of the few memorials [in the church] that survived the bombing" of London during The Blitz of 1940-1941.... The website also notes that "[t]he cast for the niche in which the bust is placed was provided by the Merchant Taylors’ Company, of which John Speed was a member."

It was with the encouragement of William Camden that Speed began his Historie of Great Britaine, which was published in 1611.[1] Although he probably had access to historical sources that are now lost to us (he certainly used the work of Saxton and Norden), his work as a historian is considered mediocre and secondary in importance to his map-making, of which his most important contribution is probably his town plans, many of which provide the first visual record of the British towns they depict.

In 1627 George Humble published the Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World, printed by John Dawson. This is the world map from this atlas with John Speed's name in the title, but not attributed to Speed's authorship.

His atlas The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine was published in 1610/11, and contained the first set of individual county maps of England and Wales besides maps of Ireland [five in all] and a general map of Scotland. Most, but not all, of the county maps have town plans on them; those showing a Scale of Passes being the places he had mapped himself. In 1627, two years before his death, Speed published A Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World which was the first world atlas produced by an Englishman. There is a fascinating text describing the areas shown on the back of the maps in English, although a rare edition of 1616 of the British maps has a Latin text – this is believed to have been produced for the Continental market. Much of the engraving was done in Amsterdam at the workshop of his friend Jodocus Hondius. His maps of English counties are often found framed in homes throughout the United Kingdom.

In 1611, he also published The genealogies recorded in the Sacred Scriptures according to euery family and tribe with the line of Our Savior Jesus Christ observed from Adam to the Blessed Virgin Mary, a biblical genealogy, reprinted several times during the 17th century.

Speed was a seventh generation ancestor of John Speed, a judge, of Farmington, now a suburb of Louisville, Kentucky; Joshua Fry Speed, his son, befriended Abraham Lincoln upon his arrival in Springfield, Illinois, who in turn appointed Joshua's brother, James Speed, to the post of Attorney General of the United States.

References

• 1. “Speed, John". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
• 2. "Biography John Speed II". MapForum.com, 3. 2006.
• 3. Johan Speed, Nigel Nicolson (introduction), The Counties of Britain: A Tudor Atlas, Thames & Hudson (1989): ISBN 0-500-25104-5; Pavilion Books (1992): ISBN 1-85145-131-5 (pbk, 1995): ISBN 1-85793-612-4

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John Speed (1552-1629) Antique maps

John Speed (1552-1629) was one of the most famous British mapmakers of the seventeenth century, and indeed perhaps the most popular of all with map collectors around the world. Historically he is noted for placing England into the mainstream of map publishing which had been dominated by the Dutch since the late sixteenth century. Speed began by issuing maps of Great Britain as early as 1611 in his famous Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine, that contained maps of the entire British Isles, their kingdoms, and the counties of those kingdoms.

Beginning in 1627, this was then accompanied by A Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World with maps of the world, its regions and its countries. Although Speed used many Dutch geographers and engravers such as Jodocus Hondius and Abraham Goos in his works, and he did copy many Dutch maps, his work is important in establishing a thereafter thriving British cartographic industry.

British County maps Speed is best known for his important Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine, which has been called the supreme achievement in British map-making. Speed spent over 15 years assembling the information for this atlas, which was first issued in 1611 by John Sudbury and George Humble. It is one of the most influential atlases of the British Isles ever published. The atlas contains maps of the entire British Isles, the individual nations, and separate maps for the counties.

These maps were primarily based on the work of Christopher Saxton and John Norden, but Speed updated information where possible and he added new cartographic features such as town plans and indications of the hundreds, making his maps the most detailed and up-to-date of their time. Not only are the maps historically fascinating, but Speed also improved the decorative features of the maps, which were all finely engraved by Jodocus Hondius.

Speed's maps are some of the most appealing cartographic images ever produced. He included intricate calligraphy, coats-of-arms, town plans, small profiles of important buildings, vignettes of battles, fancy compass roses, figures of local inhabitants, cherubs, and many other attractive features. Speed's British maps were immediately popular and remained so well into the eighteenth century, with this atlas going through many editions.

In 1627, just two years before his death, Speed added a supplement to his British Theatre containing maps of the rest of the world. This section, entitled A Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World, included maps of the entire world, the continents and of many individual countries. These maps continued with the highly decorative nature of Speed's work, many having panels of figures along the sides, city plans, elaborate cartouches and other beautiful features. The combined parts made this the first world atlas produced by an Englishman.

Timeline

• 1551/2 John Speed born in Farndon in Cheshire (Chester)
• 1557/8 Future wife, Susanna, born London
• 1567 Speed's father rents a sizable house from St. Paul's, London
• 1570 September 10 becomes a Freeman by patrimony Merchant Taylor Company
• 1572 Marries Susanna (age 13) and they have 18 children (12 sons & 6 daughters)
• 1580 Joan Speed born. Died February 1645.
• 1580 Edward Blackmore Speed born.
• 1580 William Speed born
• 1590 Adam Speed born.
• 1592 Publishes Genealogies with Hugh Broughton
• 1592 Leases two tenements in St. Paul's Churchyard, London
• 1595 January John Speed (Jr.) born.
• 1595 Wall Map of Canaan
• 1598 Obtains an allowance from Sir Fulke Greville, Treasurer of the Royal Navy
• 1598 Presents maps to Queen Elizabeth
• 1598 June 15th, Queen Elizabeth gives Speed position of customs waiter and a room in the Custom-House
• 1598 Creates portrait of Chaucer for Thomas Speght's works of Chaucer. Used until 1687.
• 1600 Speed gives several maps to The Merchant Taylors' Company c.1601 Invasions of England and Ireland map (4 sheets)
• 1606 Speed granted a coat of arms by James I for his Genealogies and maps.
• 1606 Befriends Robert Cotton (library), William Smith (source of heraldry) and William Camden (an intellectual and a founder of the Society of Antiquaries)
• 1607 April 27 William Camden introduces Speed to Jodocus Hondius (engraver for Mercator and married to Pieter van den Keere's sister)
• 1611 Engraved copper plates sent to England from Holland. William Hall & John Beale begin type-setting
• 1611 Publishes Historie of Great Britain, major work with the Theatre
• 1611 Folio Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine (67 county maps) / published by William Sudbury & George Humble
• 1611 Map of Canaan with the Genealogies first issued bound with the first edition of the King James Bible
• 1613 July 1 Speed resigns. Surrender of the office of attendant on the King in the port of London.
• 1628 March 28 Susanna dies after 57 years of marriage
• 1629 July 28th Died in London having suffered from blindness and gallstones

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References

• Miscellanea Genealogica Et Heraldica, ed. Joseph Jackson Howard, Vol. II (London: Mitchell and Hughes, 1898), pp. 18–25. GoogleBooks “While this genealogy says he was born in 1542 and has other dates that conflict with existing records, it does his list names of his children: Samuel Speed (later married to a woman named Joan, had a child also named Samuel Speed who died in 1633), Nathan Speed, Joan Speed (later married to John Hayley), ...
• http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~speedo/john/d1.htm#i7503