Erasmus
(Portraint by Durer)
Nickname/Alias: originally named Herasmus
Achievements: The greatest European scholar of the 16th century.
Born: October 27, 1466 (possible); Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Died: July 12, 1536; Basle, Switzerland (Aged around 70).
Field & Discipline: Education; Humanism; Scholar
Language: Dutch; Latin
Education: School of Church of St. John, Gouda; Chapter School of St. Lebuin, Deventer (1478-83);
School at Bois-le-Duc or 's-Hertogensbosch (1483-87); University of Paris (1495-99)
Major Work: “Novum instrumentum” (1516)
Life & Times:
In 1499 Erasmus went to Oxford where, through men like [influenced by] Thomas More*, he came into more direct contact with the heritage of the Italian Renaissance, and began to realize what might be achieved by applying to the great texts of the Christian tradition the same methods of analysis that the Italian humanists had applied to the classics. From this point onwards, Erasmus devoted his life to the reclamation of Greek and Latin literature from the obscurity of the Middle Ages, and to a return to early Christian ideals through restoration and publication of the text of the New Testament and works of the Fathers of the Church.
On his return to Paris in January 1500, Erasmus published his first book, the “Adagia,” a collection of proverbs and their meanings taken from Latin and Greek sources. The book would remain one of the most popular of Erasmus's works, and in use in humanist schools throughout Europe and would become one of the cornerstones of the revived classical culture of Europe. In 1504, Erasmus's ambition to provide a more accurate knowledge of the basic texts of the Christian tradition was confirmed by his discovery, at Parc Abbey near Louvain, of a manuscript of [influenced by] Valla's* “Annotations of the Greek New Testament.” Erasmus had already been greatly influenced by Valla's ideas on the uses of philology, and in 1505 he published Valla's “Annotations.”
In 1505 he went to Bologna (1506), took his doctor's degree in theology at Turin, and then spent nearly a year in Venice (1507-08), where he brought out a new, much enlarged edition of the “Adagia” (1508) with over 3,000 entries at [published by] Manutius'* Aldine Press. In 1509, he arrived in London, stayed with More, and while waiting for his books to arrive from Italy wrote his famous satire “In Praise of Folly” in which he satirized many aspects of contemporary society.
In 1511, Erasmus was resident at Queen's College, Cambridge, where he held the post of professor of Greek for two and a half years. Here he worked on a variety of scholarly projects, including (1512) his first work on education, “On the Method of Study,” outlining a humanist curriculum. Erasmus left England for Basel in July 1514. In 1516 the Froben Press in Basel published probably his most important work, the “Novum instrumentum,” dedicated to Pope Leo X: an edition of the New Testament containing a revised and annotated text of the Latin Vulgate faced by the Greek original, and which laid the foundation of modern Biblical criticism. In 1516 his position was improved by his appointment by the 16-year-old archduke Charles of Burgundy (the future Emperor [counsellor to] Charles V*) as honorary counsellor. Charles also commissioned Erasmus to write a work on kingship, which resulted in his 1516: “The Education of a Christian Prince.”
In 1517, Erasmus was appointed professor of theology at the University of Louvain, where he published his “Colloquies” (1519), began the revision of his edition of the New Testament, and was to be drawn into the religious revolution taking place across Europe. His widely read criticism of abuses in the Church, his revolt against formalism, and his appeal for a restoration of an earlier and purer piety got an enthusiastic response from the younger generation, including the Swiss reformer [a fan was] Zwingli* who became a regular correspondent, and the young Protestant reformers [a fan was] John Calvin* and [a fan was] Bucer*. One of his readers was [influenced] Luther*, who had sought Erasmus's approval as early as 1516.
With the papal condemnation of Luther in 1520, Erasmus's position became more difficult, as his clerical enemies blamed him for inspiring Luther, while many of his former friends condemned him for not openly supporting Luther. He was urged by friends from both sides to clarify his position and, having returned to Basel in December 1521, he composed his first colloquy “Inquisitio de fide” (1522), and then two years later his treatise on the freedom of the will, “De libero arbitrio.” In both these works, Erasmus - despite his many satires against Church abuses -- such as the sale of indulgences, the ignorance or worldiness of the clergy and the monastic orders, the abuse of pilgrimages, and the veneration of relics-- stated his total commitment to the Catholic Church and his continued hope for reconciliation and an end to schism within the Church.
In spite of these controversies, during his eight-year residence at Basel (1521-29), Erasmus continued his immensely prolific literary and scholarly work, including many short treatises on such subjects as the study of language and teaching methods, the correct pronunciation of Greek and Latin, the Cicero-worship of the Italian humanists, the restoration of the unity of the Church, and the need for peace. In 1529 he published his most important work on education, the “On the Education of Children” in which he offered a comprehensive statement of his views on the goal of education, based on his belief in the universal human capacity for self-improvement and in the relative preponderance of nurture over nature, during which he considered individuals are "made human" through education.
In 1529, when Protestant Basel officially accepted the Reformation and banned Catholic worship altogether, Erasmus and some of his humanist friends moved to the Catholic university town of Freiburg im Breisgau. He returned again to Basel in 1535, in order to see his manual on preaching through the press, and it was here that he died in the house of Froben. Despite his continued position as one of the greatest of European scholars, the controversy over his commitment to the Catholic faith continued after his death, and in the wake of the [works prohibited by] Council of Trent*, which imposed strict doctrinal controls, in 1558 Erasmus's works were placed on the Church's Index of Prohibited Books.
Extra Connections: His prohibited books were read by [studied secretly by] Bruno*
His portrait was painted by [painted by] Durer*.
Was visited by [visited by] Agricola*.
Paracelsus*?
Assessment: A major figure in the development of humanist thought.
Oneliner: Erasmus, great Renaissance humanist scholar
Bibliography:
- Collier's Encyclopedia.
- Encyclopedia Britannica.
- Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- McConica, James, Erasmus, Oxford & New York: OUP, 1991.
Father: Roger Gerard
Mother: Margaret
Siblings: Pieter (d. 1527)
Spouse: None
Children: None