English astrologer whose parents (or grandparents?), the free farmer Matthew Fiske and Elizabeth Jordain, were highly respected, according to William Lilly. He graduated from high school, but never went to university and taught himself astrology and medicine in self-study. He then went to Colchester, where he had a medical and astrological practice. There he married Judith Reade, who bore him many children. Later he went to London, where he continued his practice. In 1633 he was called to Gresham College in London to teach arithmetic and astronomy to the son of the treasurer of the treasury, Lord Weston. Possibly as a result of this activity he was granted the right to use his own coat of arms in the same year.
Since Fiske himself was very eager and of easy comprehension, he had meanwhile acquired a comprehensive scientific education. Nevertheless he was always uncertain about his own abilities. He never achieved great prosperity and, according to Lilly, died in poverty.
Lilly praises Fiske’s judgement in hourly astrological matters as well as his skill in astrological direction, which Lilly learned from him. Fiske was also John Gadbury’s astrology teacher.
Fiske, to his great chagrin, did not write books of his own, and he was prone to envy students whom he suspected had even greater talent than his own. The publication of a work by Christopher Heydon from 1603 failed for a long time due to financial resources. Only in 1650 could the work be published, now with a foreword by Lilly.
He died in 1658 and was buried at St. Pauls, Covent Garden, London.
Link to AstroWiki (german)