3. A translation from English into Latin verse, of "The Faithful
Shepherdess," a pastoral, written originally by John Fletcher. London,
1658.
4. In the octavo edition of "The Faithful Shepherdess," anno 1664, are
inserted the following poems by Sir Richard, viz.: 1. An Ode upon
occasion of his Majesty's Proclamation in 1630, commanding the gentry
to reside upon their estates in the country. 2. A summary Discourse on
the Civil Wars of Rome, extracted from the best Latin writers in verse
and prose. 3. An English translation of the fourth book of the AEneid
of Virgil or the Loves of Dido and AEneas. 4. Two Odes out of Horace,
relating to the civil wars of Rome, against covetous rich men. 5. He
translated, from Portuguese, into English, "The Luciad, or Portugal's
Historical Poem"; written originally by Luis de Camoens. London, 1655,
fol. From the many corrections in the Translator's copy, in the
possession of the late Edm. Turnor, Esq., it appears to have been very
negligently printed, which may in some degree account for the remarks
of Mr. Mickle on Sir Richard's translation. After his decease, namely
in 1671, two of his posthumous pieces in 4to were published, Querer
per solo querer: "To love only for love's sake," a dramatic piece,
represented before the King and Queen of Spain; and Fiestas de
Aranjuez: "Festivals at Aranjuez"; both written originally in Spanish,
by Antonio de Mendoza; upon occasion of celebrating the birthday of
King Philip IV. in 1621, at Aranjuez. They were translated by Sir
Richard in 1654, during his confinement at Tankersley Park, in
Yorkshire; which situation induced him to write the following stanzas:
"Time was, when I, a pilgrim of the seas,
When I, 'midst noise of camps and court's disease,
Purloin'd some hours, to charm rude cares with verse,
Which flame of faithful shepherd did rehearse.
"But now, restrain'd from sea, from camp, from court,
And by a tempest blown into a port,
I raise my thoughts to muse of higher things,
And echo arms and loves of queens and kings.
"Which queens (despising crowns and Hymen's band)
Would neither man obey, nor man command;
Great pleasure from rough seas to see the shore;
Or, from firm land, to see the billows roar."
Sir Richard, to whom Mr. Campbell assigns the merit of having given
"to our language some of its earliest and most important translations
from modern literature," [Footnote: Specimens of the Poets.] wrote
several other articles, which he had not leisure to complete; and it
is said that "some of the before mentioned printed pieces have not all
the perfection which our ingenious author could have given them, but
that is not the case with his excellent translation of Pastor Fido."
[Footnote: Biographia Britannica.]
That translation is highly complimented by Denham, who observes,
"Such is our pride, or folly, or our fate,
That few but such as cannot write translate;"
and after censuring servile translators, he says--
"Secure of fame, thou justly dost esteem
Less honour to create than to redeem;
That servile path thou nobly dost decline,
Of tracing word by word, and line by line."
And,
"That master's hand, which to the life can trace
The air, the line, the features, of the face,
May with a free and bolder stroke express
A varied posture, or a flatt'ring dress;
He could have made those like, who made the rest,
But that he knew his own design was best."
Part of Sir Richard Fanshawe's official correspondence, during his
embassies in Spain and Portugal, was published in 1701, from which
many extracts have been printed at the end of this volume; but the
latest letter therein is dated 26th January 1665. The rough copies of
his correspondence from that time until his death, are preserved in
the Harleian MS. 7010, in the British Museum, the most interesting
parts of which are added to the other extracts.
Lady Fanshawe wrote her Memoir in the year 1676, and died on the 20th
January 1679-80, in her fifty-fifth year. Her will is dated on the
30th October, 31st Car. II., 1679, in which she desired that her body
might be privately buried in the Chapel of St. Mary in Ware Church,
close to her husband, in the vault which she had purchased of the
Bishop of London. She ordered her house in Little Grove, in East
Barnet, with all the jewels, plate, and pictures therein, to be sold.
To her son, Sir Richard Fanshawe, she bequeathed the lease of the
manor of Faunton Hall, in Essex, which she held of the Bishop of
London, on condition that when he possessed his office in the Custom-
House, or any other employment of the value of 500 pounds a year, he
should pay to his eldest sister Katherine 1200 pounds, or deliver up
the said lease to her. She also left him her own and her husband's
picture set in gold, his father's picture by Lilly, and her own by
Toniars, with all her seals, particularly a gold ring, with an onyx-
stone, engraved, her purse of medals, all the gold she had by her at
the time of her death, a Spanish towel, and comeing-cloth, together
with all the books, MSS., writings, &c., sticks, guns, swords, and
turning instruments, which belonged to her late husband. To her
daughter, Katherine Fanshawe, she left 600 pounds of which sum 500
pounds were given her by her grandfather, Sir John Harrison, at his
decease, a warrant for a Baronet, probably her husband's, and all her
jewels. To her daughters Anne Fanshawe and Elizabeth Fanshawe 600
pounds each, of which sums 500 pounds were given to each of them by
their said grandfather. To her daughter Katherine she bequeathed the
Work written by herself, by her said daughter Katherine, or by her
sisters. She requested that her son Richard and her three daughters
would wear mourning for three years after her decease, namely,
mourning with plain linen, excepting either of them married in the
meantime; and she appointed her eldest daughter, Katherine, her sole
executrix, who proved her will on the 6th February 1679-80.
Of her numerous children, the following particulars have been gleaned
from her Memoir and other sources.
1. HARRISON, born in the parish of St. John's Oxford, 22nd February
1644-5, and was there buried in the same year.
2. HENRY, born in Portugal Row, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, 30th
July 1647, died on the 20th October 1650, and was buried in the
Protestant burying-ground at Paris.