John Bale
John Bale (21 November 1495 – November 1563) was an English churchman, historian and controversialist, and
Bishop of Ossory in Ireland. He wrote the oldest known historical
verse drama in English (on the subject of
King John), and developed and published a very extensive list of the works of British authors down to his own time, just as the monastic libraries were being dispersed. His contention that
Joseph of Arimathea had brought a proto-Protestant faith to Britain that was purer than Catholicism was to have far-reaching ramifications; but his unhappy disposition and habit of quarrelling earned him the nickname "bilious Bale".
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