BELLENDEN, WILLiasr, a Scottish author in the time of queen Mary and James VI. His personal history is meager and obscure; all that we kuow being the testimony of Dempster (list. Excl.) that he was a professor in the university, and an advocate in the parliament of Paris, and that he was employed in that city in a diplomatic capacity by queen Marv, and also by her son, who conferred on him the appointment of master of requests. His first work, entitled aceronis Princeps, etc., was published at Paris in 1608; his next, Ciceronis Consul, Senator, Populnsque, Romani's, in 1612. Both these works are compilations from the writings of Cicero. His next work, De Statu Prisri Orbis, appeared in 1615, and consists of a condensed sketch of the history and progress of religion, government, and philosophy in ancient times. These three works lie-repub lished in a collected form the year after, under the title .D' Stahl, Libri tres. His crown ing labor. De Tribus Luminibus Rnnangrum, was published after his death. The
"three luminaries" were Cicero, Seneca. and l'liny, out of whose works he intended to compile, on the same plan as his previous works. a comprehensive digest of the civil and religious history, and the moral and physical science of the Romans. The first of these only wag completed, and forms a remarkable monument of B.'s industry and ability. "B.." says Mr. Hallam, "seems to have taken a more comprehensive view of history, and to have reflected more philosophically on it than perhaps any one had done before." 11.'s works furnished the materials for Dr. Middleton's Life rf Cicero, though that learned divine abstains from any allusion to the forgotten Scot from whom he plundered whole sale. Wharton first denounced the theft, which was afterwards made clear by Dr. Parr iu his edition of De State, Dbri tres, published in 1787.