| Authorised form of name | Aglionby; William (c 1642 - 1705); diplomat and writer |
| Dates | c 1642 - 1705 |
| Nationality | British |
| Date of birth | c. 1642 |
| Date of death | 7 December 1705 |
| Occupation | Diplomat |
| Activity | Education:
University of Bordeaux (MD)
Career:
Secretary to Sir William Temple, Ambassador to Holland (1678); licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians (1687); employed in the Post Office (c1688); Secretary to Lord Dursley, Envoy Extraordinary to The Hague (1689-1690); Envoy to Spain (1692-1693); shipwrecked and robbed on the coast of Corsica en route from Barcelona to Turin (1693); Envoy Extraordinary to the Duke of Savoy (1694); negotiated new postal arrangements with Payot, Farmer-General of the French Posts, at Calais (1698); carried a letter to the King of Spain (1701); employed in the Office of the Secretary of State, Daniel Finch, Earl of Nottingham (FRS 1668); Envoy Extraordinary to Switzerland; returned to England (1705)
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| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 07/11/1667 |
| Proposer | Sir Anthony Morgan |
| Royal Society activity | Royal Society roles:
Council: 1683-84, 1686, 1690, 1694, 1696, 1698-99, 1702 |
| Other Royal Society activity | Published in the 'Philosophical Transactions' on the nature of silk (1699) |
| Relationships | Parents: George Aglionby and Sibella Smith
Married: Catherine Hildyard |
| Published works | RCN: 24512 |
| General context | Through his father's career and connections, Aglionby was supported after his death by the third earl of Devonshire, in particular in his education. Through this and his travels, he was fluent in multiple languages and his fluency in French even caused him some difficulties in proving he was an Englishman in France. His major publication is considered to be 'Painting Illustrated in Three Diallogues' (1685), supporting the view that Italian history painting was the superior genre of art. Aglionby was in correspondence with various peers, such as Hans Sloane (FRS 1685) or Charles Berkeley (FRS 1667). |
| Related images | Discover a selection of related images in our picture library |
| Sources | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; Hunter; information on family supplied by Judge Francis Aglionby (1988); ODNB
References:
Clark, R. 1938. 'Sir William Trumbull in Paris 1685-1686' (Cambridge University Press)
Notes & Queries 12 ser 9 (1921) pp 141-143
Notes:
ODNB has date of birth as mid 1641. ODNB has date of death as 28 November 1705. |
| Virtual International Authority File | http://viaf.org/viaf/5273899 |
| Royal Society code | NA6675 |
Archives associated with this Fellow
| Reference number | Title | Date |
| MM/18/30 | Letter from Charles S Sherrington to Ronald Winckworth, Assistant Secretary, Royal Society | 30 July 1936 |
| RBO/9/29 | 'An account of the nature of Silk as it is made in Piedmont' communicated by William Aglionby | nd |
| NLB/19/693 | Copy letter from Robert William Frederick Harrison, to Sir George Gabriel Stokes, Fellow of the Royal Society | 24 November 1899 |
| MS/390/69 | Bond of William Aglionby to the Treasurer of the Royal Society | 1 July 1675 |
| CLP/15i/59 | Paper, 'Of the nature of silk as it is made in Piedmont [Italy]' by William Aglionby | May 1699 |