Thomas Coryate, writer and traveller, was born in Odcombe, Somerset. His father, the Rev. George Coryate (?1545-1607), attended Winchester School and New College Oxford. After becoming Bachelor of Divinity in 1562, George married Gertrude Williams and served as rector of Odcombe for the rest of his life. Thomas also attended Winchester, and continued his education at Gloucester Hall (now Worcester College) at the University of Oxford. By 1606 he had returned to Odcombe, for he had been invited by the churchwardens to arrange a pageant “to draw some great company of good fellowes together for the benefit of our Church” (

Coryats Crambe

, 1611). After the death of his father, Coryate moved to London and became familiar at the household of Prince Henry. The precise nature of his employment…

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Citation: Craik, Katharine. "Thomas Coryate". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 October 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1030, accessed 19 March 2024.]

1030 Thomas Coryate 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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