Page "William Petre" Paragraph 20

Though so occupied in politics, he seems to have been a man with wider interests, a considerable portion of his wealth was spent on charitable objects ; he founded almshouses at Ingatestone, and designed scholarships for All Souls College, Oxford, but his chief benefactions were to Exeter College, Oxford, and entitle him to be considered its second founder.

In other ways, Petre was a patron of learning ; his correspondence with English envoys abroad contains frequent requests for rare books.

He was himself governor of Chelmsford grammar school, and Ascham benefited by his favour, which he is said to have requited by dedicating to Petre his Osorius de Nobilitate Christiana.

A mass of Petre's correspondence has been summarised in the ' Calendars of State Papers ', and many of the originals are in the Cottonian, Harleian, and Additional Manuscripts in the British Museum ; his transcript of the notes for Edward VI's will is in the Inner Temple Library.