"Predeceased" and "Designed."

J. Dennistoun, in his *Memoirs of the Dukes of Urbino*, ii. p. 239., says— "His friend the cardinal had lately predeceased him." Can any of your readers give me an instance from any one of our standard classical authors of a verb active "to decease"? The same author uses the word *designed* several times in the sense of *designated*. I should be glad of a few authorities for the use of the word in this sense.