The antiquary and the map

William Nicolson (1655-1727), Bishop of Carlisle, was more of an antiquary than a divine. His Northern enthusiasm for antiqmtres and the collecting of manuscripts was carried with him in his translation to the Bishopric of Derry, where he designed special rooms for the preservation of official papers. He is primarily remembered for his English Historical Library (1696), where he conjectured that ‘Whatever crime it may be anciently ... to be skilled in Maps and Charts of whole countries (that being thought a piece of knowledge proper only for Princes and great Generals) tis now a mighty defect in the modish accomplishments of the age to be otherwise’.