SOURCE: Howarth, R. G. “Thomas Sackville and A Mirror for Magistrates.” English Studies in Africa 6, no. 1 (March 1963): 77-99.

In the following essay, Howarth provides an account of Sackville's life and then considers his poetic contributions to A Mirror for Magistrates, which the critic argues were the most influential in the entire collection.

Thomas Sackville was born in 1536, at Buckhurst, Sussex. His father was Sir Richard Sackville, a cousin of Anne Boleyn, described by Roger Ascham as “a lover of learning and all learned men; wise in all doings; courteous to all persons, showing spite to none, doing good to many.” He held important offices under Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth I successively—a sort of Vicar of Bray, who earned the sobriquet of “Fillsack” (that is, self-enricher). At 15 or 16 Thomas is said to have entered Hart Hall, Oxford, where he became known as a poet, writing...