William Horman (c. 1440 – April 1535) was a headmaster at Eton and Winchester College in the early Tudor period of English history.
[7] In a contract dated 28 June 1519, he ordered Richard Pynson to produce 800 whole and perfect copies of these Latin texts, in 35 chapters.
[1] Horman became an antagonist in the Grammarians' War, which erupted when Robert Whittington attacked the new approach of teaching by example.
Whittington at the time was England's leading author of textbooks, and preferred the traditional system of learning the precepts of grammar by rote before progressing to examples.
[19] The Vulgaria draws from a variety of sources, for example including the saying "It does no good for all truth to be told nor all wrong imputed" derived from the Old English Durham Proverbs.
[22] Other sayings included the advice not to "offereth a candell to the deuyll", to remember that "many a ragged colt proued to a good horse", "it is better a chylde unborne than untaught", "manners maketh man" and "one scabbed shepe marreth a hole flocke".
For example, the book is the first to mention "ceruse", a mixture of white lead and vinegar used by wealthy women to whiten their skin.
[27] The book defines blotting paper: "Blottynge papyr serveth to drye weete wryttynge, lest there be made blottis or blurris".
Whittingtoni Protova tis Angliæ incivilem indoctamque criminationem, he dissected some of Whittington's poetry and treated it to severe criticism.