Wilkins, John
ACHIEVEMENTS:
Founding member of the Royal Society
DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH:
1614, Fawsley, Northamptonshire, England
DATE AND PLACE OF DEATH AND AGE AT DEATH:
19 November, 1672, London, England. Aged 58
DISCIPLINE:
Clergyman, linguist, scientific experimenter
FIELD: Religion, linguistics, science
LANGUAGE: English
EDUCATION:
Private school, Oxford
Magdalen Hall, Oxford University
MAJOR WORK:
"Essay Towards a Real Character and a Philosophical Language" (1668)
LIFE AND TIMES:
A short period as vicar in his hometown of Fawsley was enough to convince Wilkins that he would not get ahead that way, so he became private chaplain to a number of aristocrats including the deposed Prince Palatine (elder brother of Prince Rupert* of the Rhine) who was interested in studying science.
Wilkins was fascinated by mathematics and scientific investigations and spent all the time he could on his studies. He published his first work, "The Discovery of a World in the Moone" (1638), an attempt to prove that the moon was habitable, anonymously. In a later edition entitled "Discourse concerning the Possibility of a Passage thither", he introduced the idea of reaching the moon by flight.
In 1641 he wrote "Mercury, or the Secret and Swift Messenger", a book about language in which he discussed several types of cryptic writing. He also put forward the concept of a universal language based on his belief in democratizing knowledge, an aim held by contemporaries such as the Czech scholar Komensky*.
Wilkins became one of the prime movers of an informal group who met weekly in London to discuss such scientific and philosophical questions, carry out scientific experiments and debate the new experimental philosophy which was being promoted by Boyle*.
During this period, Wilkins published several religious books and also some popular works on science. During the Civil War he supported Parliament and in 1648 was appointed warden of Wadham College at Oxford as part of the proposed reform of the university. He was not a rabid anti-Royalist and Wadham became a favourite place for those like Wren* who were the sons of Royalists.
Wilkins was a prominent and active member of the university and did much to protect its traditions and scholarship from the more vehement Puritans. His own tolerance and lack of religious bigotry kept many scholars at Oxford who might otherwise have left, including Willis* who continued to hold Anglican services at his home. Wilkins also provided a focus for the continued weekly meetings of men of science, including Boyle, Willis, and the mathematiciansWallis* andPetty*, and he kept in touch with the London group.
In 1659 he was appointed by Parliament to be Master of Trinity College, Cambridge where he was equally revered for his gentleness and learning. When the monarchy was restored in England the following year he was removed from his post at Cambridge but his reputation as a moderate, and his contacts with Royalists, ensured his acceptance by the new regime. He was awarded a number of appointments and was presented by Charles II* with the vicarage of St Lawrence Jewry in London.
The church became an influential base for moderation and toleration, and Tillotson*, who was married to Wilkins' stepdaughter, gave popular weekly sermons there.
In 1660, Wilkins chaired a meeting in London where it was proposed that a society should be formed for the promotion of the new experimental learning. The list of suggested members was drawn mostly from those who had attended weekly meetings in London and Oxford, and in 1662 the king granted a charter to the Royal Society*.
Wilkins's reputation earned him the title of joint secretary although the other secretary, Oldenburg*, was the real administrator. During the Great Fire of London in 1666, Wilkins's house in London was destroyed and he lost his possessions including a valuable library.
In 1668 he published his most important work, "Essay Towards a Real Character and a Philosophical Language". It was conceived in the same spirit as Komensky's pansophy (scheme of universal knowledge) and was an attempt to classify all branches of knowledge systematically in preparation for the application of a universal language. It was published under the auspices of the Royal Society.
Other members, such as the botanist Ray* gave specialist help, as did the diarist Pepys* on naval matters. An alphabetical dictionary was included, in which the origin and meaning of all English words was given, and in which for the first time the words used to define an entry were themselves defined.
In the same year, Wilkins was appointed bishop of Chester.
ASSESSMENT: His tolerant attitude did much to heal the divisions between Anglicans and Puritans and
between science and religion.
EXTRA CONNECTIONS: Through the Royal Society, he knew Evelyn*, Hooke*, Grew*, Sprat* and Locke*
ONELINER: John Wilkins, founder member of the Royal Society
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Shapiro, Barbara J, John Wilkins, 1614-1672, An Intellectual Biography, University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1969.
MULTI-MEDIA:
Stuff You Missed in History Class podcast
John Wilkins and His 1640s Lunar Exploration Plans
PARENTS:
Father: Walter Wilkins
Mother: Jane Dod
SIBLINGS: Four
SPOUSE: Robina French (Oliver Cromwell's sister)
CHILDREN: None