Born at Bradley near Halifax, became fellow of Merton College, Oxford, travelled on the Continent (1578), was Queen Elizabeth’s tutor in Greek and mathematics, became Warden of Merton in 1585, and Provost of Eton in 1596, and was knighted in 1604. In 1619 he founded chairs of Geometry and Astronomy at Oxford. His principal works are “Rerum Anglicarum Scriptores” (1596), containing the works of William of Malmesbury, Henry of Huntingdon, Roger Hoveden, and “Ingulph”: “Commentaries concerning Roman Warfare” (1598); “Fower Bookes of the Histories” and the “Agricola” of Tacitus (1581); and a magnificent edition of St. Chrysostom (1610–13).
The magasine of all learning.
He was bred in Oxford, and at last became Warden of Merton Colledge, and also Provost of Eaton. Thus this skilful Gardiner had at the same time a Nurcery of young Plants, and an Orchard of grown Trees, both flourishing under his carefull inspection. This worthy Knight carefully collected the best Copies of Saint Chrysostome, and imployed learned men to transcribe and make Annotations on them; which done, he fairly set it forth, on his own cost, in a most beautifull Edition; a burden which he underwent without stooping under it, though the weight thereof would have broken the back of an ordinary person. But the Papists at Paris had their Emissaries in England, who surreptitiously procured this Knight’s learned labours, and sent them over weekly by the Post into France, schedatim, sheet by sheet, as here they passed the Press. Then Fronto Duceus (a French Cardinall as I take it) caused them to be printed there with implicite faith and blind obedience, letter for letter, as he received them out of England, onely joyning thereunto a Latine translation and some other inconsiderable Additions. Thus two Editions of Saint Chrysostome did together run a race in the world, which should get the speed of the other in publique sale and acceptance. Sir Henry’s Edition started first by the advantage of some Months. But the Parisian Edition came up close to it, and advantaged with the Latine Translation (though dearer of price) out-stript it in quickness of sale; but of late the Savilian Chrysostome hath much mended its pace, so that very few are left of the whole impression.
Many are the encomiums given of him by divers authors, which, if I should enumerate, may make a manual…. Aubrey also informs us that he was an extraordinary handsome man; no lady had a finer complexion.
We may justly deem him the most learned Englishman, in profane literature, of the reign of Elizabeth…. No edition of a Greek author published in the first part of the seventeenth century is superior, at least in magnificence, to that of “Chrysostom” by Sir Henry Savile. This came forth, in 1612, from a press established at Eton by himself, provost of that college. He had procured types and pressmen in Holland, and three years had been employed in printing the eight volumes of this great work; one which, both in splendour of execution and in the erudition displayed in it by Savile, who had collected several manuscripts of “Chrysostom,” leaves immeasurably behind it every earlier production of the English press.
Almost the only great work in the department of ancient scholarship that appeared in England in the reigns of James I. and Charles I. was the magnificent edition of Chrysostom.
