Thomas Urquhart
Sir Thomas Urquhart (1611–1660) was a Scottish aristocrat, writer, and translator. He is best known for his translation of the works of French Renaissance writer François Rabelais to English. Biography. Urquhart was born to Thomas Urquhart of Cromarty and Christian Elphinstone, daughter of Alexander Elphinstone, 4th Lord Elphinstone. At the age of eleven he attended King's College, University of Aberdeen. Afterwards he toured the Continent, returning in 1636. In 1639, he participated in the Royalist uprising known as the Trot of Turriff; he was knighted by Charles I at Whitehall for his support. In 1641 he published  his first book, a volume of epigrams. Urquhart's father died in 1642, leaving behind a large estate encumbered by larger debts. As the eldest son, Urquhart was from that time on harassed by creditors. He left for the Continent in order to economize, but returned in 1645 and published "Trissotetras", a mathematical treatise. In 1648, Urquhart participated in the Royalist uprising at Inverness. He was declared a traitor by Parliament, though he doesn't seem to have suffered any other consequences. Two years later he marched with Charles II and fought in the Battle of Worcester. The Royalist forces  were decisively defeated and Urquhart was taken prisoner. He lost all his manuscripts, which he had brought with him for safekeeping, and he had to forfeit all his property. He was held first at the Tower of London and later at Windsor, but he was given considerable freedom by his captors. The following year he published "Pantochronachanon", a work of genealogy, and "The Jewel", a defense of Scotland. In 1652, he was paroled by Cromwell and returned to Cromarty. Soon after he published "Logopandecteision", his plan for a universal language, and his most celebrated work, his translation of Rabelais. Urquhart  returned to the Continent some time after 1653, perhaps as a condition of his release by Cromwell. Little is known of his life after this time. He died no later than 1660, because in that year his younger brother took up his hereditary titles. There is a legend that Urquhart died in a fit of laughter on receiving news of the Restoration of Charles II. Style. Urquhart's prose style is unique. His sentences are long and elaborate and his love of the odd and recondite word seems boundless. At its worst his style can descend into almost unintelligible pretension  and pedantry ("a pedantry which is gigantesque and almost incredible", in the words of George Saintsbury), but at its best it can be rich, rapid and vivid, with arresting and original imagery. He coined words constantly, although none of Urquhart's coinages have fared as well as those of his contemporary Browne. Posthumous appearances. Urquhart appears as the protagonist of Alasdair Gray's short story "Sir Thomas's Logopandocy" (included in "Unlikely Stories, Mostly"), the title taken from Urquhart's "Logopandecteision" and some of the material pastiching "The Jewel (Ekskybalauron)". Urquhart appears in the illustrations throughout "Unlikely Stories". Urquhart appears  as a major character in the novel "A Hand-book of Volapük" by Andrew Drummond. Urquhart's language proposal "The Jewel" as well as Volapük, Esperanto, and other constructed languages are prominent plot devices in the novel. One of the characters in Robertson Davies' "The Cornish Trilogy" - Urquhart McVarish - claims to be a descendant of Urquhart.