Emmanuel-Henri-Dieudonné Domenech (4 November 1825 – 7 September 1903) was a French ''

abbé ''Abbé'' (from Latin ''abbas'', in turn from Greek , ''abbas'', from Aramaic ''abba'', a title of honour, literally meaning "the father, my father", emphatic state of ''abh'', "father") is the French word for an abbot. It is the title for lowe ...

'',

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

and author.

Life

Domenech was born at Rochetaillée-sur-Saône (near

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

), France. In the spring of 1846, before completing his seminary studies and when not yet twenty years of age, he left France in response to an urgent appeal for missionaries to help develop the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the wilds of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, then rapidly filling up with American and European immigration. He went first to

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, where he spent two years completing his theological course, studying English and German, and gathering knowledge of missionary requirements. In May 1848, he was assigned to duty at the new German settlement of Castroville in Texas. In 1850 he visited Europe and was received by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

, who personally paid for his return to Texas. Once in Texas again, he was transferred by Bishop Odin to Brownsville, arriving in May 1851. The

war with Mexico War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

was just concluded; raiding bands of Mexicans and Rangers were ravaging on both sides of the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

, while outlaws from the border States and almost equally lawless discharged soldiers filled the new towns, and hostile Indians hovered constantly in the background. A

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

epidemic added its horrors. Nevertheless, he went to work in Southern Texas. He continued in the mission field until September 1852, when he returned to France with health broken and was appointed titulary canon of

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

. When the French troops were dispatched to Mexico in 1861 he was selected to accompany the expedition as almoner to the army and chaplain to the Emperor Maximilian. After returning to France, he devoted his remaining years to European travel, study, and writing, and the exercise of his ecclesiastical functions. In 1882–83 he again visited America.

Works

Among numerous works dealing with travel, history, and theology, are: *''Journal d'un missionnaire au Texas et au Mexique'' (Paris, 1857) *''Voyage dans les solitudes américaines, le Minnesota'' (Paris, 1858) *''Manuscrit pictographique américain, précédé d'une notice sur l'idéographie des Peaux Rouges'' (Paris, 1860) This work was the result of an unintentional hoax.The Pictographs of Abbe Emmanuel Domenech
/ref> The German orientalist Julius Petzholdt declared that the manuscript consisted only of scribbling and incoherent illustrations in a local German dialect. Domenech maintained the authenticity of the manuscript in a pamphlet entitled ''La vérité sur le livre des sauvages'' (1861), which drew forth a reply from Petzholdt, translated into French (by Philippe Van der Haeghen) under the title of '' Le livre des sauvages au point de vue de la civilization Française'' (Brussels, 1861).

*''Voyage pittoresque dans les grands déserts du Nouveau monde'' (1860)

*''Les Gorges du Diable, voyage en Islande'' (1864) *''Legendes islandaises'' (1865) *''Le Mexique tel qu'il est'' (1867) *''Histoire du jansénisme'' *''Histoire du Mexique, Juarez et Maximilien, correspondances inédites'' (Paris, 1868) The historical accuracy of this work has been questioned by several writers, including

General Prim Juan Prim y Prats, 1st Count of Reus, 1st Marquis of los Castillejos, 1st Viscount of Bruch (; ca, Joan Prim i Prats ; 6 December 1814 – 30 December 1870) was a Spanish general and statesman who was briefly Prime Minister of Spain until h ...

. *''Quand j'etais journaliste'' (1869) *''Histoire de la campagne de 1870-'1 et de la deuxième ambulance de la presse Française'' (1871) *''L'écriture syllabique (Maya) dans le Yucatan d'après les decouvertes de l'Abbé Brasseur de Bourboug'' (1883) *''Souvenirs d'outre-mer'' (Paris, 1884) His principal works have appeared also in English translation.

Notes

References

* *

External links

*
''Handbook of Texas Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Domenech, Emmanuel 1826 births 1903 deaths French Roman Catholic missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in the United States 19th-century French historians French male non-fiction writers French expatriates in the United States