PRIOR, ROBERT, son of William Prior, London and Hitchin, Herts.; b.; adm.; Min. Can. (aged 15) 1709; QS 1710; elected head to Trinity Coll. Cambridge 1713, adm. pens. 4 Jun 1713, scholar 9 Apr 1714, but did not matr.; Lord Bolingbroke, in a letter of 4 Jul 1713 to Matthew Prior (qv), relates his endeavours to obtain the election of this “very pretty lad, who wears your name” to Christ Church, Oxford, and how he was defeated by Bentley, who “leaped over eight boys to make this youth his first option”; in thanking Bolingbroke for his care of “my friend Prior”, Matthew expresses his surprise at his correspondent knowing of “that smudging boy, for his mother is very homely” (Monk, Life of Richard Bentley, i, 353-6); edited Lusus Westmonasterienses, sive Epigrammatum et Poematum Minorum Delectus, 1730, the first printed collection of Latin compositions recited at the annual Westminster anniversaries.
PRIOR, PHILIP; b.; adm. 8 Jan 1787.
PRIOR, MATTHEW, son of George Prior, St.Stephen’s Alley, Westminster, joiner, and Elizabeth ---; bapt.St.Margaret, Westminster 2 Aug 1664; at school under Busby three years; left after reaching the middle of the third form to assist his uncle Arthur, a vintner, at the Rhenish Wine House, Channel Row, Westminster; returned to the School under the patronage of Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset (qv); KS 1681; St.John’s Coll.Cambridge, adm.pens. 2 Apr 1683, scholar 1684, matr. 1683; BA 1686/7; MA 1700; Keyton Fellow, St. John’s Coll. 5 Apr 1688; author of The Hind and Panther transvers’d to the Story of the Town and Country Mouse, 1687, written as a reply to Dryden; Secretary to Embassy, The Hague 1690-7; employed as Secretary in negotiations resulting in the Treaty of Ryswick 1697; Chief Secretary to Lords Justices of Ireland May 1697 – Nov 1699, but did not execute duties of post; FRS 23 Mar 1697/8; Secretary to Embassy, Paris 1698-9; author, Carmen Saeculare, 1699; Under Secretary of State, Southern Department May 1699 – Jun 1700; a Commissioner of Trade 1700-7; MP East Grinstead Feb – Nov 1701; joined Tories on accession of Queen Anne; a Commissioner of Customs 1712-4; went to Paris to negotiate peace Jul 1711, subsequently acting as Minister Plenipotentiary there; the Treaty of Utrecht, signed 11 Apr 1713, was familiarly known as “Matt’s Peace”; impeached by Walpole and imprisoned 1715-7; his Poems, published by subscription in 1719, earned him 4000 guineas; presented by his patron Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford (qv), with £4000 for the purchase of Down Hall, Essex; possessed aptitude for business and a knowledge of commerce; Thackeray described Prior’s as “amongst the easiest, the richest, the most charmingly humorous of English lyrical poems” (English Humourists, 1866, 175); d. 18 Sep 1721, buried Westminster Abbey, at his desire “at the feet of Spenser”; DNB.
PRINGLE, GEORGE; b. Middlesex 5 Sep 1815; adm. 5 Mar 1825; BB 1825-7; St. John’s Coll. Cambridge, adm. sizar 24 Feb 1837.
PRINCE, THOMAS; b.; adm. 23 Apr 1781.
Prince, Harry, only son of Henry Prince, C. E., of Bayswater, London, by Elizabeth Sarah Boycott; b. April 10, 1879; adm. April 28, 1892 (A); left April 1897; King's Coll. Lond.; architect; Assoc. M.R.I.B.A.; 2nd Lieut. M.G.C. Sept. 27, 1915; Lieut. April 1, 1917, 18th (Serv.) Batt. Gloucs. Regt. Aug. 1, 1918; served in Great War I; m. June 1, 1910, Susan Barbara, only daughter of William Sidney Cox, of Limerick.
Prince, Charles Hamilton, son of Thomas Guy Prince, wine shipper, of Epsom, Surrey, and Greta, d. of Sigmund Siegert of Innsbruck, Austria; b. 27 Oct. 1937; adm. May. 1950 (G); left Apr. 1955; Gonville & Caius Coll. Camb., matric. 1955, BA 1958, MA 1965; in the wine trade until 1986; Chevalier de l
Priestman, John David, son of Bernard Priestman, civil servant, of Hull, Yorks, and Hermione Henriette Clotilde, BBC European Service, d. of Edouard-Auguste Bréal of Marseille, France; b. 29 Mar. 1926; adm. Sept. 1938 (KS); left July 1944; elected to Ch. Ch. Oxf. July 1944; Merton Coll. Oxf., matric. 1944; 2nd Lieut. Coldstream Guards July 1945, served Germany 1946, temp. Capt. Brit. Military Mission Paris, France 1947; Ch. Ch. Oxf., BA 1949, MA 1959; HM Foreign Service Dec. 1949, served Belgrade 1950-3; asst. private sec. to Sec. of State 1953-5; Secretariat, Council of Europe 1955-, head of private office, Sec. -Gen. 1961-6, sec. Committee of Ministers 1966-8; dep. clerk, Parl. Assembly, Council of Europe 1968-71, Clerk 1971-86; retd. Antibes, France; m. 20 Apr. 1951 Nada, d. of Lazar Valic, Yugoslavia; d. 12 Mar. 2009.
Priestley-Cooper, Edward Becher, son of Edward Priestley-Cooper MC FRIBA and Violet Elizabeth, d. of Maj. Edward French Becher RA, of Capri, Italy; b. 20 Nov. 1924; adm. Sept. 1938 (R); left July 1940; Roy. Signals 1943-59 (Capt. ), served Middle East, Egypt, Malaya and Germany, retd. and transf. to RARO Dec. 1959; took the additional name of Becher by deed poll 10 Nov. 1982; m. 22 Apr. 1950 Hilda Mary, d. of Maj. Alfred Reginald Roberts RE, of Broughton, Lancs; d. 1 Dec. 1994.
PRIDEAUX, HUMPHREY, third son of Edmund Prideaux MP, Padstow, Cornwall, and Bridget, dau. of John Moyle, Bake, Cornwall; b. 3 May 1648; at school in 1660; a boarder; KS 1665; elected to Christ Church, Oxford 1668, matr. 11 Dec 1668, Westminster Student 26 Dec 1668 – void by marriage 16 Feb 1686, Tutor 1673-80; ordained; Rector of Llandewi Velfrey, Pembs., c. 1677-86; Rector of St. Clement, Oxford 1679 [check]; Prebendary of Norwich 15 Aug 1681 – Jun 1702; Rector of Bladon, Oxfordshire 1682-6; Rector of Saham Tony, Norfolk, 8 Jun 1686-94; Archdeacon of Suffolk from 21 Dec 1688; Rector of Trowse and Newton, Norfolk 12 Feb 1696/7-1710; declined Regius Professorship of Hebrew, Oxford 1691; Dean of Norwich from 8 Jun 1702; author, Life of Mahomet, 1697, The Old and New Yestament connected in the History of the Jews and neighbouring nations, 1716-8, and other works; his correspondence with John Ellis (qv) was edited by Sir E. Maunde Thompson, 1875 (Camden Soc., 2nd series, vol. xv); m. 16 Feb 1686 Bridget, only child of Rev. Anthony Bokenham, Rector of Helmingham, Suffolk; d. 1 Nov 1724. DNB.