William Borlase (2 February 1696^[1] – 31 August 1772),Cornishantiquary,geologist andnaturalist. From 1722, he was Rector ofLudgvan, Cornwall, where he died. He is remembered for his worksThe Antiquities of Cornwall (1754; 2nd ed., 1769) andThe Natural History of Cornwall (1758), although his plans for a parish-by-parishcounty history were abandoned.

William Borlase
Born	(1696-02-02)2 February 1696[1] Pendeen, Cornwall
Died	31 August 1772(1772-08-31) (aged 76) Ludgvan, Cornwall
Nationality	British
Alma mater	Exeter College, Oxford
Scientific career
Fields	Geologist, naturalist, antiquary

Borlase was born on 2 February1695/6^[1] atPendeen, of an ancient family originating atSt Wenn. He was educated atExeter College, Oxford, from 1713, and in 1719 he was ordained. In 1722 he was presented to the rectory ofLudgvan, and in 1732 he obtained in addition the vicarage ofSt Just, his native parish.^[2] The garden of the Rectory (now known as Hogus House) was established by Borlase; during the reign ofQueen Victoria the garden was further developed by a successor, Arthur Boscawen, and was known for its fine collection of trees and shrubs.^[3]

Between 1744 and 1746, Borlase was active against theMethodist preachers in his capacity of magistrate.^[4] Various Methodist preachers were seized on warrants issued by him andpress-ganged to serve onRoyal Navy ships abroad. InJohn Wesley's Diary there is an account of how Borlase personally laid hands on Wesley, "to serve his majesty", but withdrew when he realised that Wesley was a gentleman.^[5]

In the parish of Ludgvan were richcopper works, abounding with mineral and metallicfossils, of which he made a collection, and thus was led to study somewhat minutely the natural history of Cornwall. In 1750, he was admitted aFellow of the Royal Society; and in 1754 he published, at Oxford, hisAntiquities of Cornwall (2nd ed., London, 1769).^[4] His next publication wasObservations on the Ancient and Present State of the Islands ofScilly, and their Importance to the Trade of Great Britain (Oxford, 1756).^[2] In 1758 there appeared hisNatural History of Cornwall which includes a chapter on the inhabitants and theirnative language (about one ninth of the whole).^[6]

He presented to theAshmolean Museum, Oxford, a variety of fossils and antiquities, which he had described in his works, and received the thanks of the university and the degree ofDoctor of Civil Law.^[4] Borlase was well acquainted with most of the leading literary men of the time, particularly withAlexander Pope, with whom he kept up a long correspondence, and for whose grotto atTwickenham he furnished the greater part of thefossils andminerals.^[2] He also sent collections of mineral and fossil specimens to Dr William Oliver and to a number of natural historians in Europe.^{[citation needed]}

In 1724, William Borlase married Anne Smith. The couple had six sons, of whom two died in infancy. Of the remaining four, three became churchmen. Anne Borlase died in 1769. Borlase's elder brother was Walter Borlase, who served as vicar ofMadron, and also as mayor ofPenzance. His great-great-grandson wasWilliam Copeland Borlase (1848–1899), an antiquarian who was influenced by his ancestor's archaeological work.

Borlase was a conscientious minister to his parishioners, politically conservative, and an amateur painter. Some of his papers are preserved in Penzance at theMorrab Library.^[7]

• Borlase, William (1769)The Antiquities of Cornwall. London: E & W Books, 1973; reprint of the 2d ed., printed in 1769 by W. Bowyer and J. Nichols, for S. Baker & G. Leigh, T. Payne, B. White, London. (First ed. published in 1754 under title:Observations on the Antiquities of Cornwall.)ISBN 0-85409-852-6
• Borlase, William (1756)Observations on the Ancient and Present State of the Islands of Scilly, and their Importance to the Trade of Great Britain. Oxford: W. Jackson
• Borlase, William (1758)Natural History of Cornwall ... Oxford: printed for the author; by W. Jackson: sold by W. Sandby, at the Ship in Fleet-Street London; and the booksellers of Oxford

• Tregellas, Walter Hawken (1886)."Borlase, William" . InStephen, Leslie (ed.).Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 5. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
• Borlase, William (1803)."Memoirs [1772]".The Gentleman's Magazine. 1st ser.73:1114–17.
• Haycock, David Boyd (2006) [2004]. "Borlase, William (1696–1772)".Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/2910.(Subscription orUK public library membership required.)
• Pool, P. A. S. (1970). "William Borlase, 1696–1772". In Borlase, William (ed.).The Antiquities of Cornwall. London: E & W Books. pp. 17–22.
• Pool, P. A. S. (1978). "William Borlase". InSimmons, Jack (ed.).English County Historians: first series. Wakefield: EP Publishing. pp. 83–110.ISBN 0-7158-1309-9.
• Pool, P. A. S. (1986).William Borlase. Truro:Royal Institution of Cornwall.