Coverdale's Achievement

Miles Coverdale, who published the first complete English language Bible, died on this day in 1568 at the age of 81. His Bible, printed in 1535, was a remarkable achievement and formed the basis for every other English translation over the course of the next three hundred years.

Once an assistant to William Tyndale, Coverdale was not actually a particularly capable Greek or Hebrew scholar, but he had a fine literary style, an unshakable tenacity, and a singular vision to complete the work his brilliant mentor had begun. Working from Tyndale’s notes, he was able to hammer out a masterpiece--more than seventy percent of which ultimately found its way into the King James Version of 1611.