Anne Bacon

Anne Bacon (née Cooke; 1527 or 1528 – 27 August 1610) was an English lady and scholar. She made a lasting contribution to English religious literature with her translation from Latin of John Jewel's Apologie of the Anglican Church (1564). She was the mother of Francis Bacon.

Anne or Ann was an English translator and lady of the British court. Though Anne’s exact date of birth is not known, it is presumed she was born in or around 1528. Anne was born in Essex, England, one of the five daughters of Anthony Cooke, tutor to Henry VIII's only son Edward. Being an educator, Anthony ensured that all of his four sons and five daughters received a humanist educations, with in-depth studies in languages and the classics. From the success of not just Anne, but Anthony's other daughters, this thorough education is quite evident. Anne was trained in Latin, Italian, French, Greek, and possibly even Hebrew. Her sister the Lady Elizabeth Hoby was trained in languages and is also well known for similar translations and texts. Her family's social status was high, in part because her father worked so closely with the Tudor royal family, and were large landowners as a result. They had an association of some sort with Stratford though what precisely this association was remains unspecified.

A deeply religious woman, Anne's main works are religious centred. Anne was overly passionate about her religion, which can be seen in the letters she wrote to her sons, Anthony Bacon and Sir Francis Bacon. Due to her education, she wrote many letters to clergymen and debated theology with them as well, however, the letters to her sons are more concerned with their well-being both in mind, body, and spirit. At twenty-two, she translated and published Bernardino Ochino's work Ochines Sermons from the Italian. Her translation from the Latin into English of Bishop John Jewel's work of 1564 Apology for the Church of England was a significant step in the intellectual justification of Protestantism in England. The work was a clarification of the differences between Anglicanism and Roman Catholicism, and was critical to the support of Elizabeth I's religious policies.

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