Basset, Mary Roper (fl. 1544–1572)

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Basset, Mary Roper (fl. 1544–1572)

English writer and translator. Born before 1544 in England; died in England in 1572; daughter of Margaret (More) and William Roper (both Protestant scholars); married Stephen Clarke (died); married James Basset.

Mary Roper Basset was the granddaughter of the great humanist scholar Sir Thomas More and the daughter of Margaret More Roper (1505–1544), arguably one of the best-educated women in 16th-century Europe. In accordance with her lineage, Basset grew up surrounded by humanist writers and philosophers and received an excellent classical education. Married twice, first to Stephen Clarke and then to James Basset, she continued her studies despite the daily responsibilities of a middle-class wife. Basset contributed to the growth of English humanism through her translations into English of significant humanist works. Among her translations were Treatise on the Passion (1557), written in Latin by her grandfather Thomas More, and a translation into English from her mother's Latin edition of Eusebius' history of the church.

Laura York , Anza, California