ASCHAM, as'kam, Roger, English scholar: b. Kirby Wiske, Yorkshire, 1515; d. London, 30 Dec. 1568. While still a child, he was taken into the family of Sir Anthony Wing field and educated with the latter's children. He made rapid progress in English and classical studies, and was taught archery by Sir Anthony himself. The same generous patron sent him in 1530 to Saint John's College, Cambridge, where he read nearly all extant Latin literature, acquiring an elegant Latin style that proved most useful to him later, and developed an es pecial aptitude for Greek, which he taught to students ' younger than himself. Besides this, he paid some attention to mathematics, became an accomplished musician, and acquired re markable skill in penmanship. He received his B.A. degree in February 1533-34, and became a fellow of his college. His reputation for Greek learning soon brought him many pupils, several of whom later rose to distinction, and students from other colleges attended his lectures. In five years, he afterward said, 'Sophocles and Euripides had become at his col lege as familiar as Plautus had been previously, and Demonsthenes was as much discussed as Cicero. The beauty of his handwriting and the purity of his Latin led to his being em ployed to write the official letters of the uni versity. He took an active part in the contro versy as to the correct mode of pronouncing Greek, opposing Sir John Cheke's system, but later adopting it. In 1543-44 he wrote his famous treatise on archery, 'Toxophilus,' and in person presented a copy of it to Henry VIII, who so approved of the work that he gave the author an annual pension of 110, which was renewed by Edward VI, whose Latin secretary Ascham became. In 1548 he was appointed tutor to Princess Elizabeth. He read with her all (Cicero,' the greater part of 'Livy,> the 'New Testament' in Greek, and portions of 'Cyprian> and 'Melancthon.' Two years later he was nomi nated secretary to Sir Richard Morysin, am bassador to the Emperor Charles V. Their headquarters were at Augsburg, but Ascham made trips to Louvain, Halle, Innsbruck, Venice and Brussels, visiting famous teachers and schol ars. He lived on excellent terms with Sir Rich ard, reading Greek with him five days in the week. The death of Edward caused the recall of the embassy in 1553, when Ascham became Latin secretary to Queen Mary. With the accession
of Elizabeth, he was continued in his offices, and became in addition private tutor to the Queen, reading several hours a day with her in the learned languages. She bestowed on him the prebend of Wetwang in York Cathedral 5 Oct. 1559. His last years were filled with anxiety and care due to domestic afflictions and pecuniary embarrassment. Between and his death he found relief in the composition of his best known work, 'The Scholemaster,' of which he completed two books. The first is a general discussion of education with arguments in favor of inducing a child to study by gentle ness rather than by force. The second is an exposition of his famous method of teaching Latin, by means of ((double translation," etc., a method which has been endorsed by all subse quent writers on the theory and methods of education. When Queen Elizabeth heard of Ascham's death, she is said to have exclaimed that she would rather have cast f10,000 into the sea than to have lost her tutor, Ascham. Scholars in England and on the Continent mourned for him, and expressed their grief in stately Latin verses. In English literature Ascham has a secure place on account of the strength and vigor of his English prose, highly Latinized though it was in construction and vocabulary. His style is without the tricks that Lyby introduced, and has an easy flow and straightforwardness.
Bibliography.— By far the best edition of Ascham's writings is 'The Whole Works of Roger Ascham . . . with a Life by Dr. J. A. Giles' (3 vols. in 4 parts, London 1864-65). This edition includes 295 Latin and English let ters, many printed for the first time. 'Toxo philus' was first published in 1545; other edi tions appeared in 1571, 1589, 1788, 1821, 1865 (by J. A. Giles), 1868 (by E. Arber). 'The Scholemaster' was first issued 1570, and was followed by editions in 1571, 1572 1573, 1579, 1583, 1589, 1711, 1743. Prof. J. E. B. Mayor published the best modern edition 1863, and E. Arber reprinted the first edition 1879. The best exposition of Ascham's educational sys tem is in R. H. Quick's 'Essays on Educational Reformers' (1868). His English works, edited by Wright, were published in 1905.