Henricus Sedulius (1547-1621) – the Latinized name of Henri de Vroom van Kleef – was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

scholar noted for his works on religious figures such as the lives of St. Elziarius and

St. Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

. He also published works that defended the Franciscan order. Sedulius was also a poet.

Background

Sedulius was born in

Kleve Kleve (; traditional en, Cleves ; nl, Kleef; french: Clèves; es, Cléveris; la, Clivia; Low Rhenish: ''Kleff'') is a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Dutch border and the River Rhine. From the 11th century ...

, Germany. He died in 1621 at

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

Works

Henricus Sedulius, Diva Virgo Mosæ-Traiectensis (1609)

In 1607, Sedulius published the ''Apologeticus aduersus Alcoranum Franciscanorum, pro Libro Conformitatum''. This is a defense of the Franciscan Order, drawing from Bartholomew Albizzi's commentary of the

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 ...

as well as citations from the Christian founders and ancient philosophers. Particularly, his arguments were directed against Erasmus Alber's criticisms included in the text called ''Conformities.'' In ''Historia seraphica'', Sedulius published a collection of quotes from famous writers who praised St. Francis and these included St. Bonaventure as well as other prominent Franciscans. In an account, Sedulius said he relied on the former's collected works (constituting eight volumes) that were published by the ''Typographia Vaticana'' from 1588 to 1596. ''Historia'' likened St. Francis to an angel, introducing the book with a quote from the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

: "And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God." Sedulius also wrote the ''Icones sanctae Clarae B. Francisci Assisiatis primigeniae discipulae'' and the ''Imagines Sanctorum Francisci'', which is an illustrated collection of various saints. Sedulius collaborated with

Jan Moretus Jan Moretus, also John Moerentorf or Joannes Moretus (2 May 1543 – 22 September 1610), was a Flemish printer who was an apprentice for Christophe Plantin, married his daughter, and later inherited the printing business on his father-in-law ...

, the owner of

Plantin Press The Plantin Press at Antwerp was one of the focal centers of the fine printed book in the 16th century. History Christophe Plantin (c. 1520–1589) of Touraine was trained as a bookbinder. He fled from Paris where at least one printer had rece ...

, on the publication of several religious texts. An account described how Sedulius' interest in history emerged during his stay in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

. In addition to religious texts, Sedulius also covered historical events such as the martyr stories (e.g. Gorcum martyrs) during the

Eighty Years' War The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Refo ...

. There are texts, including versions by other authors, that contained an engraved portrait of the author or portraits engraved by owners who thought that Sedulius was the author. Some of Sedulius' poems focused on miracles such as Diva Virgo Mosae-Traiectensis and his style is said to have been influenced by

Justus Lipsius Justus Lipsius (Joest Lips or Joost Lips; 18 October 1547 – 23 March 1606) was a Flemish Catholic philologist, philosopher, and humanist. Lipsius wrote a series of works designed to revive ancient Stoicism in a form that would be compatible w ...

. Sedulius is said to have written his works mostly in Latin and has worked with his colleague Cornelius Thielmans on translated versions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sedulius, Henricus 1547 births 1621 deaths Flemish writers (before 1830) Franciscan scholars People from Kleve Christian hagiographers