AGRICOLA, Cnaeus Julius, born at Frejus, in Provence, was in Vespasian’s time made lieutenant to Vettius Bolanus in Britain; and upon his return was ranked by that emperor among the patricians, and made governor of Aquitania. This post he held for three years; and upon his return was chosen consul, and afterwards appointed governor of Britain, where he greatly distinguished himself. He reformed many abuses occasioned by the avarice or negligence of former governors, put a stop to extortion, and caused justice to be impartially administered. Vespasian dying about this time, his son Titus, knowing the great merit of Agricoa, continued him in the government. In the spring he marched towards the north, where he made some new conquests, and ordered forts to be built for the Romans to winter in. He spent the following winter in concerting schemes to bring the Britons to conform to the Roman customs. He thought the best way of diverting them from rising and taking arms was to soften their rough manners, by proposing to them new kinds of pleasure, and inspiring them with a desire of imitating the Roman manners. Soon after this the country was adorned with magnificent temples, porticos, baths, and many other fine buildings. The British nobles had at length their sons educated in learning; and they who before had the utmost aversion to the Roman language, now began to study it with great assiduity. They wore likewise the Roman habit; and, as Tacitus observes, they were brought to consider those things as marks of politeness, which were only so many badges of slavery. Agricoa, in his third campaign, advanced as far as the Tweed; and in his fourth he subdued the nations betwixt the Tweed and the friths of Edinburgh and Clyde, into which the rivers Glotta and Bodotria discharge themselves; and here he built fortresses to shut up the nations yet unconquered. In his fifth he marched beyond the friths, where he made some new acquisitions, and fixed garrisons along the western coasts, over against Ireland. In his sixth [7:2:251] campaign he passed the river Bodotria; ordering his fleet, the first which the Romans ever had in those parts, to row along the coasts, and take a view of the northern parts. In the following spring, the Britons raised an army of 30,000 men; and the command was given to Galgacus, who, according to Tacitus, made an excellent speech to his countrymen on this occasion. Agricoa likewise addressed his men in very strong and eloquent terms. The Romans gained the victory, and 10,000 of the Britons are said to have been killed. This happened in the reign of the emperor Domitian, who, growing jealous of the glory of Agricoa, recalled him, under pretence of making him governor of Syria. Agricoa died soon after; and his death is suspected to have been occasioned by poison given him by that emperor. Tacitus the historian married his daughter, wrote his life, and laments his death in the most pathetic manner.

Agricoa, George, a German physician, famous for his skill in metals. He was born at Glaucha, in Misnia, on the 24th of March 1494. The discoveries which he made in the mountains of Bohemia gave him so great a desire of examining accurately into every thing relating to metals, that though he had engaged in the practice of physic at Joachimstal by advice of his friends, he still prosecuted his study of fossils with great assiduity, and at length removed to Chemnitz, where he entirely devoted himself to this study. He spent in pursuit of it the pension he had from Maurice duke of Saxony, and part of his ow n estate; so that he reaped more reputation than profit from his labours. He wrote several pieces upon this and other subjects; and died at Chemnitz on the 21st of November 1555, a very firm Papist. In his younger years he seemed not averse to the Protestant doctrine; and he highly disapproved of the scandalous traffic of indulgences, and several other things in the church of Rome. In the latter part of his life, however, he attacked the Protestant religion, which rendered him so odious to the Lutherans, that they suffered his body to remain unburied for five days. It was then removed from Chemnitz to Zeitz, where it was interred in the principal church.

Agricoa, John, a Saxon divine, born at Eisleben in 1492. He went as chaplain to Count Mansfeld, when that nobleman attended the elector of Saxony to the diet at Spire in 1526, and that of Augsburg in 1530. He was of a restless, ambitious temper, rivalled and wrote against Melanchthon, and gave Count Mansfeld occasion to reproach him severely. He obtained a professorship at Wittemberg, where he taught particular doctrines, and became founder of the sect of Antinomians; which occasioned warm disputes between him and Luther, who had before been his very good friend. But though he was never able to recover the favour either of the elector of Saxony or of Luther, he received some consolation from the fame he acquired at Berlin, where he became preacher at court; and was chosen, in 1548, in conjunction with Julius Phlug and Michael Heldingus, to compose the famous Interim, which made so much noise in the world. He died at Berlin in 1566.