Page:A new and general biographical dictionary; containing an historical and critical account of the lives and writings of the most eminent persons in every nation v1.djvu/216

 iSo A L R E D U S. improperly ftylccl our Engiifli Florus ; his plan and execution very much reiembling that of the Roman hiftorian. It is ibmewhat furprizing that Leland has not given him a place amongft the BruiQi writers : the reafon feems to have been that Leland, through a miftake, confiders him only as the author of an abridgment of Geoffrey of Monmouth's hiftory ; but moft of the ancient writers having placed Geoffrey's hiftory later in point of lime than that of Alredus, we have reafon to conclude that Alredus compoied his compendium be- fore he ever favv the hiftory of Geoffrey. We have alfo the authority cf John Withamfted, an ancient writer of the fifteenth century, who, fpeaking of our author, fays, that he wrote a chronicle of what happened from the fettlement of Brutus to the time of the Normans, in which he alfo treated of the cities anciently founded in this kingdom, and men- tioned the names by which London, Canterbury, and York were called in old times, when the Britons inhabited them. Ifcid, This teftimony agrees exactly with the book, as we now have it. Some other pieces have been afcribed to Alredus ; but this hiftory, and that of St. John of Beverley, feem to have been all that he wrote. This laft performance was never printed, but it is to be found in the Cotton library, though not fet down in the catalogues, as being contained in a volume of tracts : it is intitled " Libertates ecclefias S. <c Johannis de Beverlik, cum privileges apoftolicis et epifco- 5< palibus, quas magifier Alueredus facrifta ejufdem ecclefiae, " cartas Saxonicae RR. Adclftani, Eadwardi Confefforis, et " Willelmi, quas fecerunt eidem ecclefiae, fed imperito ex- c fcriptore mendofe fcriptse. The Liberties of the Church " of St. John of Beverley, with the Pnvileges granted by " the Apoftolic See, or by Bifhops, tranflated out of Saxon " into Latin, by Mafter Alured, Sacrift of the faid Church." In this Treatife is contained the Saxon Charters of the Kings Adelftan, Edward the Confeilbr, and William the Con- queror, granted by them to this Church, but, through want of fkill in the Tranfcriber, ful! of miftakes. Mr. Hearne publifhed an edition of Alredus's Annals of theBritiih Hiftory, at Oxford, in 1716, with a preface of his own. Anecdotes ALSOP (ANTHONY), was educated at Weftminfter fchool, b f N7T' and thence elected to Chrift-church, Oxford, where he took ' the degree of M, A. March 23, 1696, and of B. D. Dec. 12, 1706. On his coming to theuniverfity, he was very loon diftinguiihed by Dean Aldrich, and publifhed " Fabularum
 * ' de Anglico in Latinum tranftulit : in hoc tractatulo dantur