Misplaced Pages

#710289

18-718: Mabillon was born in the town of Saint-Pierremont , then in the ancient Province of Champagne , now a part of the Department of Ardennes . He was the son of Estienne Mabillon and his wife Jeanne Guérin. At the age of 12 he became a pupil at the Collège des Bons Enfants in Reims . Having entered the seminary in 1650, he left after three years and in 1653 became instead a monk in the Maurist Abbey of Saint-Remi . There his dedication to his studies left him ill, and in 1658 he

36-443: A body of knowledge which was not merely scanty and meager, but as accurate and as well-tested as possible in a field which had not been previously investigated. This work brought Mabillon to the attention of Jean-Baptiste Colbert , who offered him a pension (which he declined), and King Louis XIV . He began to travel throughout Europe, to Flanders , Switzerland , Germany , and Italy , in search of medieval manuscripts and books for

54-473: Is necessary to devise and hand down rules for distinguishing genuine manuscripts from those that are false and interpolated. ... I undertook this task after long familiarity and daily experience with these documents. For almost twenty years I had devoted my studies and energies to reading and examining ancient manuscripts and archives , and the published collections of ancient documents. ... I compared and weighed them with one another that I might be able to compile

72-889: The Cistercian War of Observances, arbitration from the Holy See consistently forced the Abstinents to compromise with the Common Observance. The practices that de Rancé instituted in La Trappe did, however, spread to some Cistercian monasteries, mainly in France. His influence remained minor until the nineteenth century, when the French monasteries devoted to his ideals grew and created new foundations abroad. They called themselves "Trappist" in reference to La Trappe,

90-509: The Cistercian tradition," and was modelled in many ways on early Eastern monasticism, with John Climacus playing a leading role. Rancé prescribed hard manual labour, silence, a meagre diet, isolation from the world, and renunciation of most studies. He wrote spiritual works and polemtical pamphlets. An important controversy ensued when he engaged in a polemic with Jean Mabillon about how much monks were to study, which according to de Rancé

108-636: The family the former numerous benefices . At ten, he became the commendatory abbot of the Cistercian abbey of La Trappe and two other abbeys , prior of two priories , and canon of Notre-Dame de Paris , which gave him a revenue of about 15,000 livres . At twelve he published a translation of Anacreon with Greek notes. He attended the College d'Harcourt in Paris and went through his course of theological studies with great distinction. In 1651, he

126-679: The first serious thought leading to his conversion. Later in 1660 he assisted at the death of Duke of Orléans , which made so great an impression on him that he said: "Either the Gospel deceives us, or this is the house of a reprobate". After having taken counsel, he disposed of all his possessions, except the Abbey of La Trappe, which he visited for the first time in 1662. He retired to his abbey, of which he became regular abbot in 1664 and introduced an austere reform. Rancé's reform focused first and foremost centered on penitence; his severity "went beyond

144-618: The pleasures of fox hunting . He obtained his doctorate in theology in 1654. His uncle, who wanted him as coadjutor bishop, made him archdeacon , and caused him to be elected deputy of the second order to the General Assembly of the French Clergy in 1655. He was also appointed First Almoner to Gaston, Duke of Orléans , in 1656. The death of his mistress, the Duchess of Montbazon  [ fr ] in 1657 gave him

162-460: The royal library. Some of the less scholarly monks in Mabillon's own abbey criticized his Lives for being too academic; while Armand de Rancé , Abbot of La Trappe , declared that he was breaking the rules of his Order by devoting his life to study rather than manual labour. He also caused trouble by denouncing the veneration of the relics of "unknown saints", wrote a controversial critique of

180-549: The views of other document scholars. Manuscripts from many archives are addressed, and references made to items dating back to Dagobert I (King of the Franks, c. 629–639). Concerned often with "distinguishing genuine documents from forgeries " the work is now seen as the foundation work of palaeography and diplomatics . Mabillon writes: I do not deny that in fact some documents are false and others interpolated , but all of them should not be dismissed for that reason. Rather, it

198-476: The works of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (published in 1667), and also worked on a monumental collection of the lives of the Benedictine Saints, under the title Acta Ordinis S. Benedicti (published in nine volumes between 1668 and 1701). The later work was undertaken in collaboration with Dom Luc d'Achery . This monk had long been the librarian of Saint-Germain-des-Prés and was senior to Mabillon. It

SECTION 10

#1732781129711

216-571: The works of St. Augustine of Hippo , and was accused of Jansenism , but at all times he was supported by the king and the Church. In 1701 Mabillon was appointed by the king as one of the founding members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres , and in 1704 a supplement to De re diplomatica was published. In 1707 he died and was buried in the church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, in Paris. According to Fritz Stern , writing in 1956, Mabillon

234-623: Was a French abbot of La Trappe Abbey , a controversialist author, and a founding father of the Trappists . Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé was born 9 January 1626 in Paris , the second son of Denis Bouthillier, Lord of Rancé, and Councillor of State . His godfather was the Cardinal Duke of Richelieu ; his uncle Victor Le Bouthillier , Archbishop of Tours . Armand dedicated himself to ecclesiastical service, in order to preserve in

252-556: Was ordained priest by his uncle Victor Le Bouthillier and embarked on a career as a court abbot. The manner of his life was worldly in the extreme. He declined an appointment as bishop of the Diocese of St. Pol de Leon because he considered the income too small. In 1652 his father died, leaving him a further increase in estate. At the age of twenty-six he was thus left with practically unlimited wealth. He divided his time between preaching and other priestly obligations, and feasting and

270-583: Was sent to Corbie Abbey to regain his strength. He was ordained at Corbie in 1660. In 1663 he was transferred again to Saint-Denis Abbey near Paris , and the following year to the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris. This was a move which offered wide opportunities for scholarly acquaintances and Mabillon was to meet and work, among others, with Luc d'Achery , Charles du Fresne , Sieur du Cange , Étienne Baluze , and Louis-Sébastien Le Nain de Tillemont . At Saint-Germain, Mabillon prepared an edition of

288-698: Was the "greatest historical scholar of his century". The Mabillon station of the Paris Métro is named after him. Saint-Pierremont, Ardennes Saint-Pierremont ( French pronunciation: [sɛ̃ pjɛʁmɔ̃] ) is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France . This Ardennes geographical article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Ranc%C3%A9 Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé (9 January 1626, Paris  – 27 October 1700, Soligny-la-Trappe )

306-782: Was upon historical materials which d'Achery had collected that Mabillon drew for his Acta . A foreword subsequently added by Mabillon used the lives of the saints in order to illustrate the history of the early Middle Ages. In 1681, prompted by the doubts raised by the Jesuit Daniel van Papenbroek over the authenticity of supposed Merovingian documents held at the Abbey of Saint-Denis , Mabillon published his De re diplomatica . This work investigated different types of medieval documents and manuscripts , including scrutiny of their script , style, seals , signatures, testimonia , and other intrinsic and extrinsic factors, using an acquired taste derived from long experience, and consulting

324-506: Was very little. His penitential mode of life made him many enemies, and caused him to be accused of Jansenism . Indeed, he had ties to Port-Royal, a leading center of Jansenism. He did, however, sign the Formula (against Jansenism). He remained "always a figure of controversy." He resigned his abbacy in 1695, owing to declining health, and died in 1700. De Rancé did not succeed in winning many other Cistercian abbots to his causes. In

#710289