Classical scholar, playwright, priest, poet--and, to some, Catholic traitor--Nicholas Grimald was one of the second wave of English humanists. His translations of classical works, especially of Cicero's De officiis as Three Books of Duties (1556), enjoyed immense popularity, and his ability as an orator was renowned. His interest in poetry and the English language led him to revere medieval literature, as the titles of his lost works on Chaucerian subjects attest. This interest sets him apart from the majority of English humanists, who affected to despise the writings of the Middle Ages. Esteemed by his peers as among the best of a generation of Cambridge scholars, Grimald was one of the first to use blank verse in English, and it is for his verse contributions to Tottel's Miscellany (1557) that he is chiefly remembered today. He composed English and Latin drama; but of his eight plays, only two Latin works...