school, where he learnt Latin and French. A friend, Mr. Aungier, taught him Latin, and he learnt Greek by his own perseverance. Forde very soon displayed a talent for art, and though Cork did not offer much to inspire a youthful artist, his taste for literature helped to nourish and foster the high aspirations which distinguished, even in his schoolboy days, the numberless sketches on which he employed himself. He became a student in the Cork Academy, drawing from the collection of casts which Lord Listowel had obtained for that institution. The master, Chalmers, was also a scene painter, and taught Forde distemper painting, so that he was able to be employed at the theatre. He had an intention of becoming a mezzotint engraver, and taught himself the art with materials roughly made by his own hands, but soon relinquished any further practice, and became a teacher of drawing, and subsequently master in the Cork Mechanics' Institute. Among his fellow-students and intimate friends was Daniel Maclise [q. v.] Up to about twenty years of age Forde was principally engaged on works of a decorative character painted in distemper ; in 1826 he was able to execute works of his own invention, and give expression to the grand projects which his poetical mind conceived. His first picture was the 'Vision of Tragedy,' the idea taken from Milton, which was painted in distemper, in grey and white. A cartoon for this subject was in the possession of Mr. Justice Willes, and was presented by his nephew to the South Kensington Museum. Forde was continually occupied in projecting pictures of an ambitious nature. In November 1827 he painted in two days a 'Crucifixion' for the chapel of Skibbereen. In October 1827 his lungs first became affected. Early in 1828 he commenced a large picture of the 'Fall of the Rebel Angels,' but although he was able to dispose of the picture, he was not destined to complete it. He slowly sank under the increase of his consumptive symptoms, and died on 29 July 1828, at the early age of twenty-three. He was buried in St. Finn Barr's churchyard at Cork.
[Dublin Univ. Mag. (March 1845), xxv. 338; O'Driscoll's Life of Daniel Maclise : Redgrave's Dict. of Artists.]
FORDE, THOMAS (d. 1582), catholic
divine, was born in Devonshire and educated
at Trinity College, Oxford, where he obtained
a fellowship. He proceeded B.A. 13 May
1563, and commenced M.A. 14 July 1567
(Boase, Register of the Univ. of Oxford, p.
251). On being converted to the Roman
catholic faith he went in 1570 to the English College at Douay. In March 1572-3
he was ordained priest at Brussels, with
Richard Bristow [q. v.] and Gregory Martin,
these being the first three alumni who were
presented for holy orders from Douay College. He took the degree of B.D. in the
university of Douay in 1576, and soon afterwards returned to England upon the mission. On 17 July 1581 he was apprehended
with Edmund Campion [q. v.] and John Colleton [q. v.], in the house of Mr. Yates at
Lyford, Berkshire. He was conveyed to
London with the other priests and committed to the Tower. On the testimony of
two perjured witnesses he was convicted of
complicity in the pretended conspiracy of
Rheims and Rome, although he had never
been in either of those cities. Sentence of
death was pronounced 21 Nov. 1581. On
28 May 1582 he was executed with two
other priests, John Shert and Robert Johnson. Between the time of their condemnation and execution they were examined in
the Tower by the attorney- and solicitor-general, Popham and Egerton, and two civilians, Dr. Hammond and Dr. Lewis, in order
to elicit from them opinions which might be
considered treasonable in reference to the
bull of Pope Pius V and the deposing power
of the holy see. Forde was beatified by the
decree of Pope Leo XIII, dated 29 Dec. 1886.
[Bridgewater's Concertatio Ecclesiæ Catholicæ, ff. 85 b, 86 b ; Challoner's Missionary Priests (1741), i. 77; Dodd's Church Hist. ii. 107; Douay Diaries, p. 423 ; Hist. del Glorioso Martirio di diciotto Sacerdoti (Macerata, 1585), p. 127; Raissius, Catalogus Christi Sacerdotum, p. 28 ; Simpson's Life of Campion, p. 220 seq. ; Stanton's Menology, p. 238 ; Stow's Annales (1615), p. 694; Tablet, 15 Jan. 1887, pp. 81, 82.]
FORDE, THOMAS (fl. 1660), author,
describes himself as belonging to the neighbourhood of Maldon, Essex, being of the same
kindred as John Udall, the puritan (Forde,
Fœnestra, p. 135). He was a staunch and
pious royalist. His books indicate some
classical attainments. James Howell was
apparently intimate with him. His earliest
work was 'The Times Anatomized in several
characters, by T. F.,' London, 1647. This
series of pointed essays on such topics as
'A Good Subject,' 'A Soldier of Fortune,'
'Religion,' and the like, has sometimes been
wrongly assigned to the famous Fuller. Oldys
first showed that Forde was the author. An
early manuscript note in the copy in the
British Museum gives the writer's name as
'T. Ford, servant to Mr. Sam. Man.' 'Lusus
Fortunæ, the play of Fortune; continually
acted by the severall creatures on the Stage
