Thomas Marshall, the philologist, was born at Barkby in Leicestershire early in January 1621. He was educated at Lincoln College, where he was successively batteler (1640) and scholar (1641-8). In 1645 he graduated, and two years later went abroad to escape the impending parliamentary visitation. From 1650 to 1672 he was chaplain to the Merchant Adventurers, first at Rotterdam then at Dort. His Observationes in Evangeliorum Versiones perantiquas duas, Gothicas scil. et Anglo-Saxonicas (Dort, 1665) brought him a fellowship at Lincoln in 1668. In 1672 he became rector of his college, and in 1681 Dean of Gloucester. Marshall died on 18 April 1685 - his will is in Wood's Life and Times, ed. Clarke, ii. 316. Further details are in Dictionary of National Biography.

Marshall's manuscripts. The manuscripts are miscellaneous in subject matter and include Latin, English, Dutch, Italian, Greek, Anglo-Norman, Gothic, Anglo-Saxon, Coptic and Icelandic. The collection also includes some Oriental manuscripts.

The manuscripts were bequeathed to the University by Marshall in 1685, but were apparently not received until 1689-90.

Entry to read in the Library is permitted only on presentation of a valid reader's card (for admissions procedures see http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/services/admissions/).

Falconer Madan, et al., A summary catalogue of western manuscripts in the Bodleian Library at Oxford which have not hitherto been catalogued in the Quarto series (7 vols. in 8 [vol. II in 2 parts], Oxford, 1895-1953; reprinted, with corrections in vols. I and VII, Munich, 1980), vol. II, nos. 5233-5327 and 8623-8686. For a more detailed description of the medieval manuscripts in this collection see http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/scwmss/wmss/online/medieval/marshall/marshall.html.

Manuscripts, Anglo-Norman

Manuscripts, Coptic

Manuscripts, English (Old)

Manuscripts, Gothic

Manuscripts, Icelandic

Marshall | Thomas | 1621-1685 | Dean of Gloucester