Jean Joseph Delplancq (1767–1834) was a 19th-century bishop of Tournai and one of the founders of the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (french: Université de Louvain, link=no; nl, Universiteit Leuven, link=no) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of ...

Life

Delplancq was born in

Thieu {{Infobox settlement , name = Thieu , native_name={{native_name, wa, Tî , official_name = , settlement_type = district , image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_alt = , ma ...

on 30 January 1767.

Aloïs Simon Aloïs Jacques Victor Marie Simon (1897–1964) was a Belgian historian, professor at the University Faculty of Saint-Louis in Brussels, with a particular interest in 19th-century Belgian Church history from the perspective of Church–State relati ...

, "Delplancq, Jean Joseph", in '' Biographie Nationale de Belgique''
vol. 30
(Brussels, 1958), 327-328. He was educated at the college in Le Rœulx and at the

Old University of Leuven The Old University of Leuven (or of Louvain) is the name historians give to the university, or ''studium generale'', founded in Leuven, Brabant (then part of the Burgundian Netherlands, now part of Belgium), in 1425. The university was closed in ...

. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1791, was appointed parish priest in Ville-en-Hesbaye in 1803, and in 1827 became dean of

Hannut Hannut (; wa, Haneu; nl, Hannuit, ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On January 1, 2006, Hannut had a total population of 14,291. The total area is 86.53 km² which gives a population dens ...

. The diocese of Tournai had been vacant since 1819, and in 1829 he was appointed to the see. He was consecrated as bishop of Tournai on 25 October 1829. After the

Belgian Revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was the conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. T ...

of 1830 had guaranteed freedom of association and freedom of education, he established schools run by the

De La Salle Brothers french: Frères des Écoles Chrétiennes , image = Signum Fidei.jpg , image_size = 175px , caption = , abbreviation = FSC , nickname = Lasallians , named_after = , formation ...

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Euromet ...

, Peruwelz and

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...

. He was among the founders of the

Catholic University of Mechelen 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 p ...

in 1834 (moved to

Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...

in 1835), convincing his fellow bishops that it would be best to seek papal approval before pressing ahead with the foundation. He died in Tournai on 27 July 1834.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Delplancq, Jean Joseph 1767 births 1834 deaths People from Le Rœulx Bishops of Tournai Old University of Leuven alumni