BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY; CONTAINING AN HISTORICAL, CRITICAL, AND IMPARTIAL ACCOUNT OF THE LIVES AND WRITINGS OF THE Most Eminent Perfons IN EVERY NATION IN THE WORLD, From the Earliest Accounts of Time to the prefent Period 3 WHERE IN THEIR REMARKABLE ACTIONS AND SUFFERINGS, ARE ACCURATELY RECORDED AND DISPLAYED: With CATALOGUES OF THEIR LITERARY PRODUCTIONS. A NEW EDITION, IN EIGHT VOLUMES. Corrected, Enlarged, and greatly Improved; with the Addition of many Hundreds PRINTED FOR THE PROPRIETORS; AND SOLD BY ALL BOOKSELLERS IN TOWN AND COUNTRY MDCCXCY. ACCOUNTS OF THE LIVES AND WRITINGS OF THE MOST Eminent Perfons IN EVERY AGE AND NATION. C LIFFORD (GEORGE), the third earl of Cumberland, very eminent for his fkill in navigation, was born in the year 1558, and educated at Peter-houfe, in Cambridge, where he had for his tutor the celebrated John Whitgift, afterwards archbishop of Canterbury. In this place he applied himself chiefly to the ftudy of the mathematics, which his genius led him to; whereby he became qualified for the feveral great expeditions he undertook afterwards. The first time he had any public employment was in the year 1586, when he was one of the peers who fat in judgment upon Mary queen of Scots: but having a greater inclination to act by fea than by land, and (according to the fathion in the brave and warlike reign of queen Elizabeth) being bent on ntaking foreign discoveries, and defeating the ambitious defigns of the Sp niard, who was preparing his Invincible Armada for conquering England, he fitted out, at his own charge, a little fleet, confifling of three ships, and a pinnace, with a view to fend them into the South Sea, on purpose to annoy the Spanish fettlements there. His first voyage was in the year 1586, which was rather tedious and unfuccefsful; he returned to England the enfuing year, September the 29th, and then went, with many other Englith noblemen and gentlemen, to the relief of Sluys, at that time befieged by the duke of Parma; but at his arrival he found the place furrendered. In 1588 he was one of those A 2 brave brave perfons who put themselves on board the English fleet, to oppofe the Spanish Armada that was advancing to invade England. He commanded, on that occafion, the Elizabeth Bonaventure, and fignalized himself in a remarkable manner; efpecially in the laft engagement with the Spaniards, near Calais. Queen Elizabeth was fo pleafed with his good fervices, that she granted him a commiffion, dated October 4, 1588, to purfue his intended voyage to the South Sea; and, for his greater honour and encouragement, lent him one of her own royal fhips, named the Golden Lion, to be the admiral. This he victualled and furnished at his own charge; and failed about the end of October, attended with many brave English gentlemen. In the Channel he took a fhip of Dunkirk, named the Hare, laden with merchandize for Spain, which he fent home; but contrary winds at firft, and afterwards a violent ftorm, which forced him to cut his main-maft by the board, deprived him of all farther hopes and ability to profecute his defigns on the Spanish coafts, so that he returned to England. However, not difcouraged by this unhappy difappointment, he undertook a third voyage to the Weft Indies in 1589. For that purpose he obtained the queen's leave, and one fhip of the royal navy, called the Victory; to which adding three other fmall fhips, furnished at his own expence with about four hundred men, and all neceffaries, he fet fail from Plymouth the 18th of June. He now made feveral valuable feizures, but experienced all the hardships of a tedious voyage. The earl, in attempting to feize a Brazil fhip, seeing captain Lifter had boldly carried off the companion, had two parts of his own men killed or wounded, and received himself three fhots upon his fhield, and a fourth on his fide, though not deep; his head was likewife broken with ftones, and all covered with blood, and both his head and legs were much burned with granadoes; notwithftanding which, they had the good fortune to make themselves mafters of a Portugueze fhip, of 110 tons, freighted with fugar and Brazil wood; and two days after of another, between three and four hundred tons, loaden with hides, cochineal, fugar, china dishes, and filver. After being now kept out at sea by storms and contrary winds, and reduced to the greatest extremities, he arrived fafe at Falmouth on the 29th of December. In 1591 his lordship undertook a fourth voyage to the coaft of Spain, with five fhips, fitted out at his own charge. He failed from England in May, and, in his way to the Spanish coafts, found several Dutch fhips coming from Lifbon loaden with fpices, which he took out of them. Thefe fpices he determined to fend to England, in a fhip guarded by the Golden Noble, his rear-admiral; but they were taken in a calm, by fome Portúgueze gallies from Penicha, one of the captains, with feveral of the men, flain, and the reft car ied prifoners to Penicha, and from thence to Lifbon. His lordship took, befides the fpices juft now mentioned, a veffel freighted with wine, |