Wishart, George

▪ Scottish religious reformer

born c. 1513, Pitarrow, Scot.

died March 1, 1546, Edinburgh

      an early martyr of the Reformation in Scotland.

      While a teacher of Greek at Montrose, Wishart was accused of heresy and went to Cambridge (1538), where he became acquainted with the Reformer Hugh Latimer (Latimer, Hugh), himself later martyred. In 1539 Wishart was sent to preach in Bristol, where he was again accused of heresy, and this time he left for the European continent. After serving briefly as tutor at Cambridge (1542–43), he returned to Scotland, where he strongly influenced John Knox (Knox, John) and preached Reformation doctrine. Taken into custody by the Earl of Bothwell on condition that he should not be handed over to Cardinal David Beaton (Beaton, David) and imprisoned in Edinburgh, he was in fact handed over to Beaton, who had him tried and then burned at the stake at St. Andrews. His translation of the First Helvetic Confession (1536) was published in 1548. Wishart's martyrdom triggered the assassination of Cardinal Beaton and rallied the reformers in Scotland, leading to the victory of Protestantism there in 1560.

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