Forms: 5–7 -cessour, 5 -owr, 5–6 -ur, -sessour, 7 -cesser, 6– antecessor. [a. Mfr. antécesseur, a refashioning of earlier ancesseur ancestor, after L. antecēssōr-em in its L. senses of ‘predecessor in office,’ and ‘professor of law’: see ANCESTOR.]
1. One who goes before (esp. in office); a predecessor. (The latter word is more common.)
c. 1425. Wyntoun, Cron., VIII. ix. 155. Hys Priwalagis … Ðat before hys Antecessowrys gat.
1494. Fabyan, VI. clxi. 154. He shulde folowe the stablenes of his antesessours … and ponysshe mysdoers.
1502. Arnold, Chron., 213. Our antecessurs and successours.
1636. Prynne, Unbish. Tim. & Tit. (1661), 78. Before that he went up to the Apostles his Antecessors.
1789. Smyth, trans. Aldrich’s Archit. (1818), 54. The custom of all his antecessors in that profession.
1869. Gladstone, Juv. Mundi, viii. § 1. 222. This deity [Zeus] has ancestors and antecessors.
† b. An ancestor, a progenitor (usually however when viewed as a predecessor). Obs.
c. 1470. Henry, Wallace, i. 1. Our antecessowris, that we suld of reide … We lat ourslide.
1474. Caxton, Chesse, 53. Of his grauntsirs fader and of alle his antecessours.
1525. Ld. Berners, Froiss., II. ccxxxvii. 736. Our fathers and Antecessours of olde tyme.
a. 1657. Sir J. Balfour, Ann. Scotl. (1824), II. 223. Solemley interrid amongest his antecessers.
1660. R. Coke, Power & Subj., 210. The Kings noble Progenitors and Antecessors of the Nobles of this Realm.
† c. A predecessor in the possession of property.
1574. trans. Littleton’s Tenures, 16 b. Writ of assise of the death of hys antecessoure at the common lawe.
[1628. Coke, On Litt., 78 b. In Law … Antecessor is applyed to a natural person … but Prædecessor is applyed to a body Politique or Corporate.
1809. Bawdwen, Domesd. Bk., 624. Robert claims the land of Outi … to be in the soke of his Antecessor Lepi.]
† 2. A professor of civil law. Obs.
1751. Chambers, Cycl., Antecessor … is particularly used in some universities for a public professor, who teaches or lectures the civil law.
† 3. pl. One of the advanced guard of an army. Obs.
1753. Chambers, Cycl. Supp., Antecessors, in the antient art of war … a party of horse dispatched before the agmen or body of an army … also denominated Antecursores.
