Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Robartes, Foulk

666091Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 48 — Robartes, Foulk1896William Arthur Shaw

ROBARTES or ROBERTES, FOULK (1580?–1650), divine, was born about 1580 (see funeral inscription in Blomefield's Norfolk, iii. 668). He was educated at Cambridge, proceeding B.A. from Christ's College 1598–9; he soon graduated M.A. 1602, and B.D. 1609 (Wood, Fasti Oxon. i. 400). He was incorporated B.D. at Oxford on 10 July 1621. In 1602 he was rector of St. Clement's at the Bridge, Norfolk (Foster, Alumni Oxon.), and from 1606 to 1607 vicar of Offley, Hertfordshire (Urwick, Nonconf. in Hertfordshire, pp. 660–2). On 16 Feb. 1615–16 he was installed prebendary of the fifth stall in Norwich Cathedral (Le Neve, Fasti, ii. 500). In addition to the prebend, he held the vicarage of Trowse and the rectory of St. Clement's, Norwich, and was also ‘minister’ of St. Saviour's, Norwich (Blomefield, Norfolk, iii. 365; Moens, The Walloons and their Church at Norwich, p. 67). On 10 March 1633 he signed the circular letter of the dean and chapter of Norwich to their tenants, pressing for the repair of the cathedral (Hist. MSS. Comm. 11th Rep. pt. vii.). In the preceding year he had strongly opposed the puritan demand of a lecturer for Norwich (ib. 12th Rep. pt. i. p. 465, 23 July 1632). Although a constant preacher, he was ejected from all his livings during the civil war, and lived in great poverty till his death on 1 April 1650. He was buried on the 10th on the west side of the south transept of Norwich Cathedral, where an inscription was erected to his memory. His wife, Anne, one of the twenty-one children of Richard Skinner, gent., died on 25 March 1627. Robartes wrote: 1. ‘The Revenue of the Gospel in Tythes due to the Ministry of the Word (by that word in Tim. i. 5, 18),’ Cambridge, 1613, 4to; dedicated to John Jegon, bishop of Norwich, and Sir Edward Coke, chief justice. 2. ‘God's Holy House and Service described according to the Primitive Form thereof,’ London, 1639, 4to.

[Authorities quoted in text; Blomefield's Norfolk, iii. 365, 668; works in Brit. Mus.]

W. A. S.

Dictionary of National Biography, Errata (1904), p.234
N.B.— f.e. stands for from end and l.l. for last line

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338 ii 2 Robartes, Foulk: omit being then of Trinity