Thomas Holland (translator)
Thomas Holland (1539, in Ludlow, Shropshire – 17 March 1612[1]) was an English Calvinist scholar and theologian, and one of the translators of the King James Version of the Bible.
He was a 1570 graduate of Exeter College, Oxford and Fellow of Balliol. In 1585 he served as personal chaplain to Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, who was appointed governor of the Netherlands. Dudley, who was an ardent Protestant, utilized Holland in maintaining religious rigor among the troops during the two-year campaign which ended without great success and few battle engagements. For his service to Dudley, Holland was graciously rewarded by Queen Elizabeth.[1]
Returning to Oxford, Holland served as Rector of Exeter College and was appointed Regius Professor of Divinity in 1589. He was a member of the "First Oxford Company", responsible for the books of the Old Testament prophets, in the project to create an Authorised Version of the Bible for reading in the churches.
He is interred in the chancel of St Mary's church, Oxford.
References
- 1 2 "Thomas Holland". King James Bible Translators. Retrieved 2014-01-29.
- McClure, Alexander. (1858) The Translators Revived: A Biographical Memoir of the Authors of the English Version of the Holy Bible. Mobile, Alabama: R. E. Publications (republished by the Marantha Bible Society, 1984 ASIN B0006YJPI8 )
- Nicolson, Adam. (2003) God's Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible. New York: HarperCollins ISBN 0-06-095975-4
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lawrence Humphrey |
Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford 1589–1612 |
Succeeded by Robert Abbot |
| Preceded by Thomas Glasier |
Rector of Exeter College, Oxford 1592–1612 |
Succeeded by John Prideaux |