GRIMALD or GRIMOALD, NICHOLAS English poet, was born in Huntingdonshire, the son probably of Giovanni Baptista Grimaldi, who had been a clerk in the service of Empson and Dudley in the reign of Henry VII. He studied both at Cambridge and Oxford. In 1547 he was lecturing on rhetoric at Christ Church, and shortly afterwards became chap lain to Bishop Ridley, who, when he was in ,prison, desired Grimald to translate Laurentius Valla's book against the alleged Donation of Constantine, and the De gestis Basiliensis Concilii of Aeneas Sylvius (Pius II.). His connection with Ridley brought him under suspicion, and he was imprisoned in the Marshalsea. It is said that he escaped the penalties of heresy by recanting his errors. Grimald contributed to the original edition (June 7 ) of Songes and Sonettes (commonly known as Tottel's Miscellany), 40 poems, only ten of which were retained in the second edition published in the next month. He translated (1553) Cicero's De officiis as Marcus Tullius Ciceroes thre bokes of duties (2nd ed., 1556). Two Latin tragedies also are extant ; Archipropheta sive Johannes Baptista, printed at Cologne in 1548, probably per formed at Oxford the year before, and Christus redivivus (Cologne, 1543), edited by Prof. J. M. Hart (for the Modern Language Association of America, 1886, separately issued 1899) . As a poet Grimald is memorable as the earliest follower of Surrey in the production of blank verse. He writes sometimes simply enough, as in the lines on his own childhood addressed to his mother, but in general his style is artificial.
See C. H. Herford, Studies in the Literary Relations of England and Germany (pp. 113-119, 1886) ; A Catalogue of printed books • by writers bearing the name of Grimaldi (ed. A. B. Grimaldi), printed 1883 ; and Arber's reprint of Tottel's Miscellany.