Engelbert (c. 1250 – 12 May 1331) was

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

of the Benedictine monastery of Admont in Styria.

Life

He was born of noble parents at Volkersdorf in Styria, and entered the monastery of Admont about 1267. Four years later he was sent to

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

to study grammar and logic. After devoting himself for two years to these studies he spent nine years at the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...

studying philosophy and theology. In 1297 he was elected Abbot of Admont, and after ruling thirty years he resigned this dignity when he was almost eighty years old, in order to spend the remainder of his life in prayer and study. Engelbert was one of the most learned men of his times, and there was scarcely any branch of knowledge to which his versatile pen did not contribute its share.

Works

His literary productions include works on moral and dogmatic theology, philosophy, history, political science,

Holy Scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual prac ...

, the natural sciences, pedagogy, and music. The best known of Engelbert's works is his historico-political treatise ''De ortu, progressu et fine Romani imperii'', which was written during the reign of

Emperor Henry VII Henry VII ( German: ''Heinrich''; c. 1273 – 24 August 1313),Kleinhenz, pg. 494 also known as Henry of Luxembourg, was Count of Luxembourg, King of Germany (or '' Rex Romanorum'') from 1308 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1312. He was the first em ...

(1308–1313). It puts forth the following political principles: a ruler must be a learned man; his sole aim must be the welfare of his subjects; an unjust ruler may be justly deposed; emperor and pope are, each in his sphere, independent rulers; the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

is a Christian continuation of the pagan empire of ancient Rome; there should be only one supreme temporal ruler, the emperor, to whom all other temporal rulers should be subject. He bewails the gradual decline of both imperial and papal authority, prophesies the early coming of

Antichrist In Christian eschatology, the Antichrist refers to people prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and substitute themselves in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form)1 John ; . 2 John . ...

and with it the ruin of the Holy Roman Empire and a wholesale desertion of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

. The work was published repeatedly. Following are the most important of the other works of Engelbert which have been printed: ''De gratus et virtutibus beatae et gloriosae semper V. Marie''; ''De libero arbitrio''; ''De causâ longaevitatis hominum ante diluvium''; ''De providentiâ Dei''; ''De statu defunctorum''; ''Speculum virtutis pro Alberto et Ottone Austriae ducibus''; ''Super passionem secundum Matthaeum''; ''De regimine principum,'' a work on political science, containing sound suggestions on education in general; ''De summo bono hominis in hâc vitâ,'' ''Dialogus concupiscentiae et rationis,'' ''Utrum sapienti competat ducere uxorem''; ''De musica tractatus,'' a very interesting treatise on music, illustrating the great difficulties with which teachers of music were beset in consequence of the complicated system of the hexachord with its

solmization Solmization is a system of attributing a distinct syllable to each note of a musical scale. Various forms of solmization are in use and have been used throughout the world, but solfège is the most common convention in countries of Western cultur ...

and mutation. The treatise was inserted by Gerbert in his ''Scriptores ecclesiastici de musicâ sacrâ.'' St. Blasien, 1784, anastatic reprint, Graz, 1905), II, 287 sqq.

Notes

References

* George Bingham Fowler (1947) ''Intellectual Interests of Engelbert of Admont'' *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Admont, Engelbert Of 1250 births 1331 deaths Austrian Benedictines Benedictine abbots Austrian abbots Benedictine scholars Austrian music theorists