John Rous

John Rous (c. 1411/20 – 24 January 1492) was an English historian and antiquary, most noted for his Historia Regum Angliae ("History of the Kings of England"), which describes ancient British and English rulers from Brutus to King Henry VII. His historical work is now considered to have "displayed no critical faculty" and to have made credulous the "imaginative embellishments (of) the myths of Geoffrey of Monmouth." However his Rous Roll and Warwick Roll are noted for their historically important illustrations, often credited to Rous's hand but not with certainty. Origins Rous was born at Warwick, probably in 1420, though this is uncertain. He was the son of Geoffrey Rous of Warwick, a younger son of Thomas Rous of Brinklow, by his wife Margaret Fyncham, a daughter of Richard Fyncham, both of armigerous gentry families. Career He was educated at Oxford University. He entered holy orders, remaining in the vicinity of Warwick for most of his clerical career but making some travels to study archives for his historical research. He spent most of his career in the service of the Yorkist dynasty. He was chaplain of the chapel of Guy's Cliffe during the reign of King Richard III (1483-1485) and was a canon of the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick. Works