 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
188
Hereditary Genius
Sydney, Sir Philip, continued—
F. Sir Henry Sydney, a man of great parts, much considered by both Mary and
Elizabeth; was three times Lord Deputy of Ireland, and governed wisely.
[G.] Sir William Sydney, a soldier and knight of some renown in the time of Henry
VIII.
g. John Dudley, Earl of Warwick and Duke of Northumberland, “the minion of his
time;”
Earl-Marshal of England, and the most powerful of subjects; attainted
and beheaded 1553.
u. Sir Robert Dudley, the great Earl of Leicester, the favourite of Queen Elizabeth.
uS. Sir Robert (son of the great Earl of Leicester, but not enjoying the tide), was “a
complete gentleman in all suitable employments, an exact seaman, an excellent
architect, mathematician, physician, chemist, and what not. ... A handsome
personable man, . . . noted for ... tilting, and for his being the first of all that
taught a dog to sit, in order to catch partridges.” (Anthony Wood, as quoted in
Burke's “Extinct Peerages.”)
b. Mary, Countess of Pembroke; was of congenial tastes and qualities with her
brother, who dedicated his “Arcadia” to her. Was the subject of Ben Jonson's
well-known epitaph:
“ Underneath this sable hearse
Lies the subject of all verse,
Sidney's sister, Pembroke's mother.
Death, ere thou hast slain another
Wise and fair and good as she,
Time shall throw a dart at thee.”
n. 3d Earl of Pembroke, Chancellor of Oxford; a scholar, poet, and patron of
learned men.
[B.] Sir Robert Sydney, created Earl of Leicester. (There almost seems a fatality
attached to this title, judging from the number of times it has been re-created;
no less than six different families have held it and become extinct.) He was a
soldier of some renown.
P. Sir Robert Sydney, 2d Earl of Leicester; a man of great learning, observation, and
veracity.
PS. Algernon Sydney, the patriot, beheaded 1683. He had great natural ability, but
was too rough and boisterous to
 |
|
 |
|