Chapter 12 Biography of Moore

Petrovski Thomas More was born in London in 1478. His father, John More, belonged to a wealthy urban family. In Thomas's childhood, John served as a judge of the Royal High Court. Thomas More received a good education. When he was still As a child, he was sent to St. Anthony's School in London, where he had a good grasp of Latin. At the age of thirteen, because of his father, he lodged at the home of Cardinal Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury Morton was a man of great learning, a famous statesman, and even for a time a chancellor. Situation. In 1492, Moore entered Oxford University. In the university, because of his outstanding talent, he not only quickly attracted people's attention, but also became famous with his teachers Collett, Grossing, Linac and others. Forget the age. These were humanists—opponents of the medieval theology that put the study of personality and human nature first. During his time at Oxford, More spoke to the Italian humanist Mirandola, Count Pico (1462-1494) was so fascinated that More translated his biography and his work "Twelve Swords" describing the twelve principles of life into English. The intention to "clean" the dirt of Christian teaching is something More feels dearly to him.

However, More's father wanted to make him a jurist and did not approve of his yearning for ancient languages ​​and literature. In 1494, his father forced him to leave Oxford University to specialize in law. More has both theoretical and practical Under the guidance of experienced jurists, he studied English law very well, and he soon gained a reputation as a first-class lawyer. However, he did not give up the study of ancient books, and continued to study English in Latin and Greek. He continued to pursue the literary career that had begun at Oxford University. By 1497, the famous humanist Erasmus of Rotterdam had met More when he first came to England. The two of them were in They met at a grand banquet given by the Lord Mayor of London, and within a few hours they were each admiring each other with their quick wit. Erasmus finally couldn't help exclaiming: "You are not Mo Who is it!" More immediately replied: "If you are not Erasmus, hell!" After making friends with Erasmus, More got closer to the humanists, and he became the Oxford professor in 1498. Active member of Erasmus' group at the University's Greek lectures. Later, in 1509, at More's home and under More's influence, Erasmus wrote his famous Praise of Folly A book. Like the protagonist Raphael Hissrad in the novel, More is more interested in Greek writers than Latin writers. He pays special attention to Plato and studies him. According to Erasmus Smith proved that Moore had

①According to the book "Thomas More" by (English) Chambers, page 70 and the British Encyclopedia (ncyclopdia Britanica, 1976) Vol. 12, p. 437, Erasmus KL first came to England and met More in 1499, not in 1497. Appendix II of this book is translated according to the Russian version, in which The description of historical facts is different from that contained in the relevant English books in some places. I will not add notes one by one. ——Editor of Chinese translation He was fascinated by Plato's "communism" thought in his early years. The traces of studying Plato's "Republic" are clearly visible in the book, and he was also familiar with and loved Lucian. Like most humanists at that time, More could not He completely abandoned the religious worldview. He studied Augustine's works seriously, and even entered the Carterhouse Abbey for a time. The monastery life made it possible for More to study science with great concentration, but the way of life in the monastery, after he became familiar with it, forced him to refuse. Shaved his family and returned to the world. More, as a lawyer, was famous in London for several years because of his justice and support for the wronged. In 1504, when he was twenty-six years old, he was Elected as a member. In the House of Representatives, he is even more prestigious, but also aroused the hatred of King Henry VII, because Henry VII was the princess's wedding and the crown prince's knighthood ceremony (by the way, at this time The Crown Prince is dead) extorted a subsidy from Parliament, and More spoke against it. Parliament cut the subsidy, and Henry VII took revenge on More for this. He imprisoned More's father in the Tower of London , and fined a huge sum of money, because Moore himself is inviolable, and it is impossible to fine Moore with money, not to mention that Moore does not have very considerable property. After that, Moore felt that it was wise to break away from political activities. He Returning to the legal profession, he re-studied the humanities and natural sciences. He further delved into mathematics and astronomy, and studied music. In 1505, Moore met the John Coulter family in Scotland, and they had a close relationship. He fell in love with the second lady of the Colter family, but he didn't want to offend the eldest lady, so he married the eldest lady. Moore had four children after marriage: three daughters and one boy. Moore is a very family-oriented person, and loves him ten minutes and especially loved his eldest daughter Margaret, who gave her a good education. Margaret was proficient in ancient languages ​​and even won the honor of a scholar. Her husband Roper was the first to write for More Biographer. More realized his ideal of equal rights for women in his own home. In 1511, More was widowed and married another elderly widow named Middleton. In 1509, Henry VII After his death, More felt that he could resume social activities. He was elected as the umpire of the Lincoln Law Society in London; in 1510, he served as the magistrate of the City of London. At this time, he had won the full trust of the citizens. England The businessman twice prompted the King of England to appoint More to the Netherlands and Calais to mediate business disputes with local businessmen. When he was on a mission in 1516, More began to write in Flanders.

The history of his mission formed the background of this book. He soon became famous and brought the author the honor he deserved. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, this book was printed many times and translated into European languages. Although Moore wrote in English earlier (one of his works, "The History of Richard III", written in 1513, enjoys great reputation and is the blueprint for a historical play by Shakespeare) , but he wrote it in Latin.Latin was at the time the international language of scholarly writing. More's Latin was beyond the reach of most of his contemporaries, though lacking the lightness and elegance of Erasmus' style. More's reputation for erudition, As well as the achievements of his actual activities, the king of England wanted to get close to this outstanding figure. In 1518, More was appointed as the chief judge of the royal petition and the privy adviser, so he quickly devoted himself to the In 1521, he served as Deputy Chancellor of the Exchequer and was knighted. More had a high reputation in the court at this time. The King of England often talked with him, invited him to have dinner with him informally, and to study astronomy and mathematics. However, More did not feel any joy because of these invitations. In 1523, nominated by Lord Chancellor Wolsey

, Moore was elected as the Speaker of the House of Commons. In 1525, he was appointed Prime Minister of the Duchy of Lancaster. In 1529, he replaced Wolsey as the Lord Chancellor of England and became the number one dignitary under the King. He was the first man of bourgeois birth to serve as Lord Chancellor. However, More was not dazzled by victory. He was still a simple, humble, and amiable man, just as Erasmus described him. His old father continued to work at the Crown Court. More knelt before his father every day before performing his duties as Lord Chancellor, asking for his blessing. More was prescient about his own precarious position. The King of England visited him personally, Embracing him and walking with him in the garden, More told his son-in-law afterwards that if, at the price of More's head, he could have bought any insignificant castle in France that was at war with England, the King of England would have thought nothing of it. More's head was cut off. At the traditional solemn celebration held at the inauguration of the justices, More replied that what awaited him was not so much honor as difficulty and danger. More understood , his position is precarious, especially if he climbs high, he will inevitably fall hard. In the process of engaging in all state affairs activities, he is completely independent, never willing to go along with others, and making compromises. In 1528, Moore was honorably exiled. Threatening to go to Spain, because he did not stand on the side of the King when he voted for the national budget in Parliament. Revenge. As religious policy clashes. More is in favor of maintaining the Pope's regime, although

①Thomas Wolsey (about 1475-1530) , the prominent justice and cardinal, because they angered King Henry VIII, were sentenced as state criminals, sent to London, and died of illness on the way. ——Chinese translator However, in his works on religious questions, he advocated the use of general councils to limit this regime. Approval of this regime did not prevent him from laughing at the superstitious ignorance of the liar monks and the stupidity of the cumbersome theologians. There was no sympathy for the Reformation which took place in 1517. King Henry VIII of England, a complete opponent of the Reformation, supported the Pope, and in 1521 published a whole book attacking Luther, which More had been commissioned to edit. Luther German wrote a rebuttal, calling Henry VIII a "clumsy, confused, stupid head" in the article

, is a "ridiculous clown who doesn't know what faith is." 1523, "Thomae Mori response to the mockery of King Henry VIII spread by Mortuluther" ("Thomae Mori response adconvitia Martini Luthericonges Ata in Henricum Regem Angliaeius nominis Oc Atavum ") was published, which was full of personal attacks on Luther, a "drunk and wild man". Yes, the Pope is completely subject to King Charles V of Spain, and he refuses to agree to the divorce between Henry VIII and Princess Catherine of Spain. Henry VIII wants to divorce because he wants to accept the beautiful maid Ann Bolling as his queen. But the real reason is deeper First floor: Marrying with the Spanish royal family has lost its meaning at this time, and breaking with the Pope and splitting the Church of England means that you can get a lot of wealth from the British Catholic monastery with huge treasures and real estate. In Moore’s view , such reforms were not much better than Luther's. In 1532 he resigned as Lord Chancellor, just when the King needed his support. More returned to hermitage, but this could not save the King from He retaliated. He refused to attend Ann Bolling's coronation, which only made the King of England hate him even more. More was accused of treason, saying that he was in collusion with the monk Nebaton, who had prophesied The king of England, Naan Bolling, must be destroyed. But the accusation against More was groundless. More was acquitted. When his daughter expressed his joy at this, he said to her: "Take things Putting it aside doesn't mean erasing things."

In 1533, Henry VIII forced the House to pass a decree announcing that he was the head of the Church of England. In addition, his bigamy with Ann Boleyn was also considered valid, and Boline's daughter (later Queen Elizabeth) was declared the head of the British Church. The rightful heir to the throne. The most eminent men in England, including More, were required to take an oath to recognize the King as head of the Church. More was imprisoned in the Tower of London for refusing to take the oath. He remained there for more than a year. He insisted on not disclosing the reasons for his refusal to take the oath. On July 1, 1535, he was tried by the special committee of the court, and a man named Rich, who was secretly sent to the prison to manipulate him, came forward as a false witness to accuse him. He defended himself with a calm countenance. However, he was found guilty. The verdict read: "Send him back to the Tower of London, and from there drag him across the city to Tyburn, where he was hanged. , make him half-tired, untie him from the rope, cut off his genitals, dig out his intestines, tear off his heart and lungs and burn him on fire while he is still alive, then dismember him and put him on fire. Nailed his limbs on the four gates, and hung his head on London Bridge." But the King of England ordered More to be beheaded instead of this punishment. After hearing this, More pointed out: "God, help Forget about such favors, my friends!"

Thomas More was sentenced to death on July 7, 1535. He was indomitable, regarded death as home, and told jokes before his execution. More was forbidden to make a final appeal to the people. He bid farewell to his family, tied his eyes with a turban, and The executioner said: "My neck is short, aim well, don't make a fool of yourself." Moore's head was finally hung on London Bridge to show the public. Her son was imprisoned in the Tower of London for a while. In 186, in order to include this outstanding figure of humanism and socialist thought in its forest of "martyrs", In an effort to consolidate his prestige, he canonized More as a saint, although More's views were by no means orthodox.