Gustave Séligmann d'Eichthal (3 March 1804, Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle - 9 April 1886, Paris) was a French writer,

publicist A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a company, a brand, or public figure – especially a celebrity – or for a work such as a book, film, or album. Publicists are public relations specialists who ...

, and

Hellenist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient ...

Life

At the age of thirteen he became a convert to Roman Catholicism from Judaism, and when he left the

Lycée Henri IV In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

in 1822, he became a disciple of

Auguste Comte Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte (; 19 January 1798 – 5 September 1857) was a French philosopher and writer who formulated the doctrine of positivism. He is often regarded as the first philosopher of science in the modern sense ...

, who initiated him into the

doctrines Doctrine (from la, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief system ...

of Saint-Simon (and later

Barthélemy Prosper Enfantin Barthélemy, or Barthélémy is a French name, a cognate of Bartholomew. Notable people with this name include: Given name * Barthélemy (explorer), French youth who accompanied the explorer de La Salle in 1687 * Barthélémy Bisengimana, Cong ...

), to the propagation of which he devoted a part of his fortune. In 1832 d'Eichthal went to

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, and on his return to Paris in 1836 published "Les Deux Mondes," containing his reflections on the Orient. He now began to advocate the use of Greek as a

universal language Universal language may refer to a hypothetical or historical language spoken and understood by all or most of the world's people. In some contexts, it refers to a means of communication said to be understood by all humans. It may be the idea of ...

, and published many works, among which were: "Les Trois Grands Peuples Méditerranéens et le Christianisme," Paris, 1864; "Origines Bouddhiques de la Civilisation Américaine," in the "Revue Archéologique," Sept., 1864, and April, 1865; and "Texte Primitif du Premier Récit de la Création," Paris, 1875; reprinted after his death under the title "Mélanges de Critique Biblique." D'Eichthal was one of the chief founders (1881) of L'Association pour l'Encouragement des Etudes Grecques. After his death his son published his "La Langue Grecque," Paris, 1887.

Jane Welsh Carlyle Jane Baillie Carlyle ( Welsh; 14 July 1801 – 21 April 1866) was a Scottish writer and the wife of Thomas Carlyle. She did not publish any work in her lifetime, but she was widely seen as an extraordinary letter writer. Virginia Woolf ca ...

, wife of

Thomas Carlyle Thomas Carlyle (4 December 17955 February 1881) was a Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher. A leading writer of the Victorian era, he exerted a profound influence on 19th-century art, literature and philosophy. Born in Ecclefechan, Dum ...

, described him as "a gentle soul, trustful, and earnest-looking, ready to do and suffer all for his faith". He had two sons, Eugène Séligmann d'Eichthal, born 3 November 1844 in Paris, died 28 February 1936 in Paris; and Georges Séligmann d'Eichthal, as well as a daughter whose married name was Mme. Paul Le Bret. She had been a friend of

Rosa Bonheur Rosa Bonheur (born Marie-Rosalie Bonheur; 16 March 1822 – 25 May 1899) was a French artist known best as a painter of animals ( animalière). She also made sculpture in a realist style. Her paintings include '' Ploughing in the Nivernais'', fi ...

when they were both children, as their fathers had both lived briefly at the Saint-Simonian

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

Ménilmontant Ménilmontant () is a neighbourhood of Paris, situated in the city's 20th arrondissement. It is roughly defined as the area north of the Père Lachaise Cemetery, south of Parc de Belleville, and between ''Avenue Jean-Aicard'' on the west and ...

Writings

*''Histoire et origine des Foulahs ou Fellans. Études sur l'histoire primitive des races océaniennes et américaines'' (1841) *''Les Évangiles'' (2 volumes, 1863) Text on line 12
/small> *''Mélanges de critique biblique'' (1886) *''Gustave d'Eichthal. La Langue grecque, mémoires et notices, 1864-1884'', précédé d'une notice sur les services rendus par Gustave d'Eichthal à la Grèce et aux études grecques, par le marquis de Queux de Saint-Hilaire (1887) ;Opuscules, mémoires et varia *''Lettres à MM. les députés composant la commission du budget, sur la permanence du système de crédit public et sur la nécessité de renoncer à toute espèce de remboursement des créances sur l'État'' (1829) *''À un catholique, sur la vie et le caractère de Saint-Simon'' (1830) Text on line
/small> *''Religion saint-simonienne. Rapports adressés aux Pères suprêmes sur la situation et les travaux de la famille'', avec Stéphane Flachat et Henri Fournel (1831) Text on line
/small> *''Religion saint-simonienne. La Prophétie. Ménilmontant, le 1er juin 1832'', textes du Père Enfantin, de

Charles Duveyrier Charles Duveyrier (12 April 1803 – 10 November 1866) was a French playwright and Saint-Simonianism ideologist, born on April 12, 1803 in Paris, where he died on November 10, 1866. Biography A son of Honoré-Nicolas-Marie Duveyrier and half-b ...

, Gustave d'Eichthal et

Michel Chevalier Michel Chevalier (; 13 January 1806 – 18 November 1879) was a French engineer, statesman, economist and free market liberal. Biography Born in Limoges, Haute-Vienne, Chevalier studied at the ''École Polytechnique'', obtaining an engineering d ...

(1832) *''Observations sur l'opération du remboursement au pair'' (1838) *''Lettres sur la race noire et la race blanche'', avec Ismayl Urbain (1839) *''De l'Unité européenne'' (1840) *''Étude sur la philosophie de la justice. Platon'' (1863) *''De l'Usage pratique de la langue grecque. De l'Avenir du peuple grec et de la langue grecque'' (1864) *''Les Trois grands peuples méditerranéens et le christianisme'' (1865) *''Étude sur les origines bouddhiques de la civilisation américaine'' (1865) *''Mémoire sur le texte primitif du 1^er récit de la création (Genèse, ch. I-II, 4), suivi du texte du 2^e récit'' (1875) *''Notice sur la fondation et le développement de l'Association pour l'encouragement des études grecques en France (avril 1867-avril 1877), lue à la séance du 5 juillet 1877'' (1877) *''Socrate et notre temps : théologie de Socrate, dogme de la Providence'' (1881) Text on line
/small> *''Correspondance inédite de Stuart Mill avec Gustave d'Eichthal'', translation and preface by Eugène d'Eichthal (1898) *''Condition de la classe ouvrière en Angleterre (1828)'', travel notes of Gustave d'Eichthal, published by Eugène d'Eichthal (1902)

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

*La Grande Encyclopédie, s.v.; *Larousse, Dict. s.v.S. V. E.

References

External links

*
Genealogy
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Eichthal, Gustave D 1804 births 1886 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism from Judaism Writers from Nancy, France 19th-century French writers French people of Jewish descent Saint-Simonists Lycée Henri-IV alumni French geographers French hellenists 19th-century French essayists