Paris, Matthew: see Matthew of Paris.

Parker, Matthew, 1504-75, English prelate, archbishop of Canterbury. At Cambridge he was influenced by the writings of Martin Luther and other reformers. In 1535 he was appointed chaplain to Anne Boleyn and in 1537 to Henry VIII. In 1544, Parker became master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, to which he later left his fine collection of ancient manuscripts, and in 1545 he was made vice chancellor of Cambridge. Under Edward VI he was presented with the deanery of Lincoln, but after the accession of Mary I, who deprived him of his preferments, he lived in obscurity until he was called (1559) by Elizabeth I to the see of Canterbury. He courageously undertook the primate's responsibilities in a time of change and peculiar difficulty, sustaining a distinctly Anglican position between extreme Protestantism and Roman Catholicism. In 1562 he revised the Thirty-nine Articles. He supervised (1563-68) the preparation of the Bishops' Bible, published anonymously De antiquitate Britannicae ecclesiae (1572), and is also noted for his editions of the works of Matthew of Paris and other chroniclers.

Arnold, Matthew, 1822-88, English poet and critic, son of the educator Dr. Thomas Arnold.

Arnold was educated at Rugby; graduated from Balliol College, Oxford in 1844; and was a fellow of Oriel College, Oxford in 1845. In 1851, after a period as secretary to the 3d marquess of Lansdowne, Arnold was appointed inspector of schools, a position he held until 1886, two years before his death. During his tenure he went on a number of missions to European schools. He was impressed with some educational systems on the Continent—most particularly the concept of state-regulated secondary education—and wrote several works about them.

His first volume of poems, The Strayed Reveller, appeared in 1849; it was followed by Empedocles on Etna (1852). Dissatisfied with both works, he withdrew them from circulation. Poems (1853) contained verse from the earlier volumes as well as new poems, including "The Scholar Gypsy" and "Sohrab and Rustum." Poems: Second Series appeared in 1855 and was followed by Merope: A Tragedy (1858) and New Poems (1867); the latter volume included "Thyrsis," his famous elegy on Arthur Hugh Clough.

Arnold's verse is characterized by restraint, directness, and symmetry. Though he believed that poetry should be objective, his verse exemplifies the romantic pessimism of the 19th cent., an age torn between science and religion. His feelings of spiritual isolation are reflected in such poems as "Dover Beach" and "Isolation: To Marguerite."

Matthew Arnold was also one of the most important literary critics of his age. From 1857 to 1867 he was Professor of Poetry at Oxford; during this time he wrote his first books of criticism, including On Translating Homer (1861), Essays in Criticism (1865; Ser. 2, 1888), and On the Study of Celtic Literature (1867). In Culture and Anarchy (1869) and Friendship's Garland (1871) he widened his field to include social criticism. Arnold's interest in religion resulted in St. Paul and Protestantism (1870), Literature and Dogma (1873), and Last Essays on Church and Religion (1877). In the 1880s he gave several lectures in the United States, which were published as Discourses in America (1885).

Arnold was the apostle of a new culture, one that would pursue perfection through a knowledge and understanding of the best that has been thought and said in the world. He attacked the taste and manners of 19th-century English society, particularly as displayed by the "Philistines," the narrow and provincial middle class. Strongly believing that the welfare of a nation is contingent upon its intellectual life, he proclaimed that intellectual life is best served by an unrestricted, objective criticism that is free from personal, political, and practical considerations.

Pratt, Matthew, 1734-1805, American portrait painter, b. Philadelphia. After he was an apprentice to his uncle, a painter in Philadelphia, he practiced portrait painting and then studied under Benjamin West in London (1764-66). His most famous paintings are The American School (Metropolitan Mus.) and portraits of Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin West, and Cadwallader Colden.

Prior, Matthew, 1664-1721, English poet and diplomat, b. Wimborne, Dorset. With his appointment as secretary to the embassy at The Hague during the negotiations leading to the Treaty of Ryswick (1697), Prior began a long diplomatic career. During Anne's reign he joined the Tories (1711) and helped, as special envoy, to conclude the Peace of Utrecht. With the accession of George I, Prior was ruined politically and was imprisoned by the Whigs for two years (1715-16). As a poet he is best remembered for his light verse and raillery. With Charles Montagu, he wrote a burlesque of Dryden's The Hind and the Panther called The Country Mouse and the City Mouse (1687). He is also known for two long satiric poems, Alma and Solomon (both 1718). He is buried in Westminster Abbey.

Vassar, Matthew, 1792-1868, American philanthropist, founder of Vassar College, b. England. He emigrated to the United States with his father in 1796. In 1811, after his father's successful brewery in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., had burned, the son opened another, which in time became immensely prosperous. In 1861 he founded Vassar Female College, to which he gave more than $800,000; he also contributed to local charities and churches.

Green, Matthew, 1696-1737, English poet. His one important poem, The Spleen (1737), marked by its wit, was in praise of the contemplative life.

Griswold, Matthew, 1714-99, American jurist and politician, b. Lyme, Conn. Admitted to the bar in 1743, he was very learned in the law and was active in Connecticut politics. As deputy governor (1769-84) before and during the American Revolution he was ex officio judge of the highest court in Connecticut, and by his wisdom contributed much to the new state in troubled times. He was later governor (1784-86) and presided over the state convention (1788) that ratified the Constitution. Roger Griswold was his son.

Flinders, Matthew, 1774-1814, English naval captain and hydrographer, noted for his charting and coast surveys of Australia and Tasmania. From 1795 to 1799 and again from 1801 to 1803 he made valuable maps and charts of the water and coasts, circumnavigating both Australia and Tasmania. He is said to have been the first to perceive and correct compass errors caused by iron ships. He wrote A Voyage to Terra Australis (1814). Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie was his grandson.

Simpson, Matthew, 1811-84, American Methodist bishop, b. Cadiz, Ohio. In 1839 he became the first president of Indiana Asbury Univ. (now DePauw Univ.). He edited (1848-52) the Western Christian Advocate and was consecrated bishop in 1852. He used his oratorical skill on behalf of the Union in the Civil War and in eulogizing his friend, Abraham Lincoln, at Lincoln's burial services in Springfield, Ill.

Thornton, Matthew, 1714-1803, political leader in the American Revolution, signer of the Declaration of Independence, b. Ireland. Taken to America as a child, he studied medicine and in 1740 began practice at Londonderry, N.H. He served as an army surgeon in the French and Indian Wars and held political posts in New Hampshire before and after his term in the Continental Congress (1776-77).

Tindal, Matthew, c.1655-1733, English deist. For a short time in the reign of James II he was a Roman Catholic, but in 1688 he returned to the Church of England. The first of his published writings to excite attention was The Rights of the Christian Church Asserted (1706), a defense of Erastianism; it was proscribed by Parliament. His Defence of the Rights of the Christian Church (1709) reiterated his position and was similarly condemned. Tindal's Christianity as Old as the Creation (1730), in which he set forth his rationalistic views, has been called the bible of deism.

Lyon, Matthew, 1750-1822, American political leader and pioneer, b. Co. Wicklow, Ireland. He emigrated to America in 1765, settling eventually in Vermont. During the American Revolution he served with Ethan Allen. After the war he moved (1783) to the town of Fair Haven, Vt., and, active in various business ventures, became its leading citizen. From 1797 to 1801 he was a vociferous Anti-Federalist member of the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1798 he was convicted under the Sedition Act for the publication in the Vermont Journal of a letter criticizing President John Adams. While serving a short jail sentence, he was reelected to Congress. Moving to Eddyville, Ky., in 1801, he represented (1803-11) that state in Congress. Lyon was appointed (1820) U.S. agent to the Cherokee in Arkansas, where he was elected the second delegate of that territory to Congress, but died before taking his seat. He was a hero of three successive frontiers, an able exponent of frontier views in Congress, and a man of shrewd business ability.

Daye, Matthew, c.1620-1649, British printer in Massachusetts Bay colony; son of Stephen Daye. His name first appears on the almanac for 1647, but it would seem probable that he was employed at the Cambridge Press from its beginning and that the early works produced there under the supervision of Stephen Daye were actually printed by Matthew Daye. See also Glover, Jose.

Matthew, Saint, in the New Testament, one of the Twelve Apostles. Also called Levi, he was a publican (tax collector) from Capernaum. Since the 2d cent. the first Gospel (see Matthew, Gospel according to) has been attributed to him, but the attribution is almost certainly incorrect. Matthew is said to have died a martyr. His symbol as an evangelist is a winged young man or an angel. Feast: Sept. 21.

Matthew, Thomas: see Rogers, John (1500?-1555).

Matthew, Gospel according to, 1st book of the New Testament. Scholars conjecture that it was written for the church at Antioch toward the end of the 1st cent. Traditonally regarded as the earliest Gospel, it is now generally accepted that it postdates the Gospel of St. Mark and drew considerable material from it (see Synoptic Gospels). However, Matthew differs from the other Gospels in its narration of Jesus' birth, in the arrangement of the Sermon on the Mount, and in the length of the discourse on the end of the world. There are more allusions to the Old Testament in this Gospel than in the others; it was clearly written for Jewish Christians, the purpose being to prove that Jesus was the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament. Much of the book is devoted to his teaching. The Gospel can be divided into five sections: the origins of Jesus the Messiah; the first two years of his ministry in Galilee; his third year of ministry, including his rejection by religious opponents and his journey and stay in Jerusalem; the passion and resurrection; the instruction to the disciples to evangelize. The traditional ascription of the Gospel to St. Matthew, which dates from the 2d cent., is questioned by most scholars. See J. D. Kingsbury, Matthew (1975); G. Stanton, ed., The Interpretation of Matthew (1983).

Stuart or Stewart, Matthew: see Lennox, Matthew Stuart, 4th earl of.

(born June 3, 1853, Charlton, near Greenwich, London, Eng.—died July 28, 1942, Jerusalem) British archaeologist who made valuable contributions to the techniques of excavation and dating. During excavations in Egypt in the mid 1880s Petrie developed a sequence dating method, based on a comparison of potsherds at various levels, that made possible the reconstruction of ancient history from material remains. His excavations, together with those of Heinrich Schliemann at Troy, marked the beginning of the examination of successive levels of a site, rather than the previously haphazard digging. Petrie made many important discoveries in Egypt and Palestine. His Methods and Aims in Archaeology (1904) was the definitive work of its time. He taught at the University of London (1892–1933).

Learn more about Petrie, Sir (William Matthew) Flinders with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Nov. 1, 1609, Alderley, Gloucestershire, Eng.—died Dec. 25, 1676, Alderley) British legal scholar. Orphaned at age 5, he planned to become a minister but ultimately chose the study of law. He defended Archbishop William Laud and other Royalists during the English Civil Wars (1642–51). As a justice of the Court of Common Pleas (1654–58) and a member of Parliament (1654–60), he played a major role in reforming the legal system and promoting the restoration of Charles II. He later became chief baron of the Exchequer (1660) and chief justice of the King's Bench (1671–76). One of the greatest scholars of the history of English common law, he is best known for his History of the Pleas of the Crown (published 1736).

Learn more about Hale, Sir Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born May 9, 1860, Kirriemuir, Angus, Scot.—died June 19, 1937, London, Eng.) Scottish playwright and novelist. After moving to London, he wrote Auld Licht Idylls (1888), a book about his native Scotland. His best-selling novel The Little Minister (1891) was made into a play in 1897. His plays Quality Street (1901) and The Admirable Crichton (1902) ran successfully in London. After creating the stories of Peter Pan for a friend's sons, he won great success with his classic children's play Peter Pan, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up (1904). His other plays include The Twelve-Pound Look (1910) and Dear Brutus (1917).

Learn more about Barrie, Sir James (Matthew) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(flourished 1st century AD, Palestine; Western feast day September 21, Eastern feast day November 16) One of the Twelve Apostles, traditional author of the first Gospel. According to the Gospels, he was a tax collector known as Levi when Jesus called him to be a disciple. Other information about him is scarce. The Gospel of Matthew is directed at a Jewish-Christian audience in a Jewish environment and may have been written originally in Hebrew, but it is now doubted that the apostle Matthew was its author. Tradition holds that Matthew conducted his ministry in Judaea, after which he served as a missionary to Ethiopia and Persia. Legend differs as to whether he died a martyr's death.

Learn more about Matthew, Saint with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born March 3, 1895, Fort Monroe, Va., U.S.—died July 26, 1993, Fox Chapel, near Pittsburgh, Pa.) U.S. army officer. He graduated from West Point and served in staff positions until World War II. In 1942 he commanded an airborne division in the invasion of Sicily (1943), the first airborne assault in U.S. military history. He led his paratroopers in the Normandy Campaign and commanded airborne operations across Europe. In the Korean War he led the U.S. Eighth Army, rallying UN forces and effecting a counteroffensive. Promoted to general, he succeeded Douglas MacArthur as Allied commander in the Far East (1951). He later served as supreme commander of NATO forces (1952) and army chief of staff (1953–55).

Learn more about Ridgway, Matthew B(unker) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born June 3, 1853, Charlton, near Greenwich, London, Eng.—died July 28, 1942, Jerusalem) British archaeologist who made valuable contributions to the techniques of excavation and dating. During excavations in Egypt in the mid 1880s Petrie developed a sequence dating method, based on a comparison of potsherds at various levels, that made possible the reconstruction of ancient history from material remains. His excavations, together with those of Heinrich Schliemann at Troy, marked the beginning of the examination of successive levels of a site, rather than the previously haphazard digging. Petrie made many important discoveries in Egypt and Palestine. His Methods and Aims in Archaeology (1904) was the definitive work of its time. He taught at the University of London (1892–1933).

Learn more about Petrie, Sir (William Matthew) Flinders with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born April 10, 1794, South Kingston, R.I., U.S.—died March 4, 1858, New York, N.Y.) U.S. naval officer. He followed his brother Oliver Perry into the navy and commanded the first U.S. navy steamship, the Fulton (1837–40). He led naval forces in the Mexican War and assisted Winfield Scott at Veracruz. In 1852 Pres. Millard Fillmore sent Perry to head a naval expedition to induce Japan to establish diplomatic relations with the U.S. Concluding that the country's centuries-old policy of isolation would be ended only by a show of force, Perry led four ships into the fortified harbour of Uraga (1853) and convinced the Japanese to accept his message. In 1854 he entered Edo (now Tokyo) Bay with nine ships and concluded the first treaty between Japan and the U.S., which granted the U.S. trading privileges and opened the Far East to U.S. influence.

Learn more about Perry, Matthew C(albraith) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(flourished 1st century AD, Palestine; Western feast day September 21, Eastern feast day November 16) One of the Twelve Apostles, traditional author of the first Gospel. According to the Gospels, he was a tax collector known as Levi when Jesus called him to be a disciple. Other information about him is scarce. The Gospel of Matthew is directed at a Jewish-Christian audience in a Jewish environment and may have been written originally in Hebrew, but it is now doubted that the apostle Matthew was its author. Tradition holds that Matthew conducted his ministry in Judaea, after which he served as a missionary to Ethiopia and Persia. Legend differs as to whether he died a martyr's death.

Learn more about Matthew, Saint with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 9, 1775, London, Eng.—died May 4, 1818, at sea) English novelist and dramatist. The sensational success of his gothic novel The Monk (1796) earned him the nickname “Monk” Lewis. Its horror, violence, and eroticism brought it a wide readership, though it was universally condemned. Lewis also wrote a popular music drama in the same vein, The Castle Spectre (1798). After inheriting a large fortune in Jamaica in 1812, he sailed twice to the island to inquire about the treatment of slaves on his estates there, and he died at sea. Journal of a West India Proprietor (1834) attests to his humane and liberal attitudes.

Learn more about Lewis, Matthew Gregory with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born March 16, 1774, Donington, Lincolnshire, Eng.—died July 19, 1814, London) British mariner and hydrographer. In two expeditions (1795–99, 1801–03) he circumnavigated Australia and Tasmania, charting their coasts and waters. His Voyage to Terra Australis (1814) recounted his adventures. His name was given to several geographic entities in Australia. Flinders Petrie was his grandson.

Learn more about Flinders, Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born April 10, 1794, South Kingston, R.I., U.S.—died March 4, 1858, New York, N.Y.) U.S. naval officer. He followed his brother Oliver Perry into the navy and commanded the first U.S. navy steamship, the Fulton (1837–40). He led naval forces in the Mexican War and assisted Winfield Scott at Veracruz. In 1852 Pres. Millard Fillmore sent Perry to head a naval expedition to induce Japan to establish diplomatic relations with the U.S. Concluding that the country's centuries-old policy of isolation would be ended only by a show of force, Perry led four ships into the fortified harbour of Uraga (1853) and convinced the Japanese to accept his message. In 1854 he entered Edo (now Tokyo) Bay with nine ships and concluded the first treaty between Japan and the U.S., which granted the U.S. trading privileges and opened the Far East to U.S. influence.

Learn more about Perry, Matthew C(albraith) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born March 3, 1895, Fort Monroe, Va., U.S.—died July 26, 1993, Fox Chapel, near Pittsburgh, Pa.) U.S. army officer. He graduated from West Point and served in staff positions until World War II. In 1942 he commanded an airborne division in the invasion of Sicily (1943), the first airborne assault in U.S. military history. He led his paratroopers in the Normandy Campaign and commanded airborne operations across Europe. In the Korean War he led the U.S. Eighth Army, rallying UN forces and effecting a counteroffensive. Promoted to general, he succeeded Douglas MacArthur as Allied commander in the Far East (1951). He later served as supreme commander of NATO forces (1952) and army chief of staff (1953–55).

Learn more about Ridgway, Matthew B(unker) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Dec. 24, 1822, Laleham, Middlesex, Eng.—died April 15, 1888, Liverpool) English poet and literary and social critic. Son of the educator Thomas Arnold, he attended Oxford and then worked as an inspector of schools for the rest of his life. His verse includes “Dover Beach,” his most celebrated work; “Sohrab and Rustum,” a romantic epic; and “The Scholar Gipsy” and “Thyrsis.” Culture and Anarchy (1869), his central work of criticism, is a masterpiece of ridicule as well as a searching analysis of Victorian society. In a later essay, “The Study of Poetry,” he argued that, in an age of crumbling creeds, poetry would replace religion and that therefore readers would have to understand how to distinguish the best poetry from the inferior.

Learn more about Arnold, Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 9, 1775, London, Eng.—died May 4, 1818, at sea) English novelist and dramatist. The sensational success of his gothic novel The Monk (1796) earned him the nickname “Monk” Lewis. Its horror, violence, and eroticism brought it a wide readership, though it was universally condemned. Lewis also wrote a popular music drama in the same vein, The Castle Spectre (1798). After inheriting a large fortune in Jamaica in 1812, he sailed twice to the island to inquire about the treatment of slaves on his estates there, and he died at sea. Journal of a West India Proprietor (1834) attests to his humane and liberal attitudes.

Learn more about Lewis, Matthew Gregory with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Nov. 1, 1609, Alderley, Gloucestershire, Eng.—died Dec. 25, 1676, Alderley) British legal scholar. Orphaned at age 5, he planned to become a minister but ultimately chose the study of law. He defended Archbishop William Laud and other Royalists during the English Civil Wars (1642–51). As a justice of the Court of Common Pleas (1654–58) and a member of Parliament (1654–60), he played a major role in reforming the legal system and promoting the restoration of Charles II. He later became chief baron of the Exchequer (1660) and chief justice of the King's Bench (1671–76). One of the greatest scholars of the history of English common law, he is best known for his History of the Pleas of the Crown (published 1736).

Learn more about Hale, Sir Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born March 16, 1774, Donington, Lincolnshire, Eng.—died July 19, 1814, London) British mariner and hydrographer. In two expeditions (1795–99, 1801–03) he circumnavigated Australia and Tasmania, charting their coasts and waters. His Voyage to Terra Australis (1814) recounted his adventures. His name was given to several geographic entities in Australia. Flinders Petrie was his grandson.

Learn more about Flinders, Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born May 9, 1860, Kirriemuir, Angus, Scot.—died June 19, 1937, London, Eng.) Scottish playwright and novelist. After moving to London, he wrote Auld Licht Idylls (1888), a book about his native Scotland. His best-selling novel The Little Minister (1891) was made into a play in 1897. His plays Quality Street (1901) and The Admirable Crichton (1902) ran successfully in London. After creating the stories of Peter Pan for a friend's sons, he won great success with his classic children's play Peter Pan, the Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up (1904). His other plays include The Twelve-Pound Look (1910) and Dear Brutus (1917).

Learn more about Barrie, Sir James (Matthew) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Dec. 24, 1822, Laleham, Middlesex, Eng.—died April 15, 1888, Liverpool) English poet and literary and social critic. Son of the educator Thomas Arnold, he attended Oxford and then worked as an inspector of schools for the rest of his life. His verse includes “Dover Beach,” his most celebrated work; “Sohrab and Rustum,” a romantic epic; and “The Scholar Gipsy” and “Thyrsis.” Culture and Anarchy (1869), his central work of criticism, is a masterpiece of ridicule as well as a searching analysis of Victorian society. In a later essay, “The Study of Poetry,” he argued that, in an age of crumbling creeds, poetry would replace religion and that therefore readers would have to understand how to distinguish the best poetry from the inferior.

Learn more about Arnold, Matthew with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Matthew is an ancient human male name.

The Hebrew meaning of this name: "Gift from God."

The original variant of this name: Mathias.

Alternate English spelling: Mathew.

A popular variant of the name is the shortened form Matt, spelled with two T's even when the full given name contains only one.

For the etymology of the name Matthew, and for cognates (related forenames and surnames) and usage, see Matthew (name).

For a list of notable people with the forename (i.e. given name) Matthew, see Matthew (given name).

For a list of notable people with the surname (i.e. family name) Matthew (without -s), see Matthew (surname).

For a list of notable people with the surname Matthews, see Matthews (surname).

Matthew can also refer to:

In religion:

• The Gospel of Matthew, a book of the Bible New Testament named after Matthew the Evangelist, traditionally held as the apostle of the Gospel of Christ

In history:

• The Matthew, the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 from Bristol to North America

In fiction:

• Matthew the fictional character from DC Comics