William Blencowe

William Blencowe (Marston St. Lawrence, 6 January 1683 – Northampton, 25 August 1712) was a British scholar and cryptographer who was the first official Royal Encipherer appointed by Queen Anne of England. He worked for the English and other Allied governments during the War of the Spanish Succession. Life Personal life Blencowe, was the third son of Sir John Blencowe (1642–1726), a judge and baron of the Exchequer, and his wife, Anne Blencowe (1656–1718), the eldest daughter of the mathematician and cryptographer John Wallis. He matriculated at Lincoln College, Oxford in 1697 and moved later that year to Magdalen College, where he graduated BA in 1701. Career Nominated by Archbishop Thomas Tenison he became a fellow of All Souls College, Oxford on 21 December 1702, and he received his MA in 1704. He was taught cryptography by John Wallis, who was unofficial cryptographer to king William III of England. On the recommendation of his grandfather he received the survivorship of Wallis's pension of £100 p.a., following the latter's death on 28 October 1703. Blencowe succeeded Wallis as decipherer to the government. His eventual salary for the office was £200 per annum.