Lambert Daneau (c. 1530 – c. 1590) was a French jurist and

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

theologian.

Life

He was born at Beaugency-sur-Loire, and educated at

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and Adrianus Turnebus Adrianus Turnebus (french: Adrien Turnèbe or ''Tournebeuf''; 151212 June 1565) was a French classical scholar. Life Turnebus was born in Les Andelys in Normandy. At the age of twelve he was sent to Paris to study, and attracted great notice by ...

, and then law in Orléans from 1553. He moved to

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...

in 1559; he was particularly influenced by

François Hotman François Hotman (23 August 1524 – 12 February 1590) was a French Protestant lawyer and writer, associated with the legal humanists and with the monarchomaques, who struggled against absolute monarchy. His first name is often written 'Francis' ...

, and by

Anne du Bourg Anne du Bourg (1521, Riom – 23 December 1559, Paris) was a French magistrate, nephew of the chancellor Antoine du Bourg, and a Protestant martyr. Early life Educated at the university of Orléans, he became a professor and had Étienne de la ...

, who was executed in that year for heresy. He went to

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

first in 1560, and studied at the

Genevan Academy The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...

. He then became a pastor in

Gien Gien () is a commune in the Loiret department in north-central France. Gien is on the river Loire, from Orléans. Gien station has rail connections to Montargis, Nevers and Paris. The town was bought for the royal domain by Philip II of Franc ...

. After eight fruitful further years in Geneva from 1572, he made a reputation as preacher and theological writer. He left for a position in the

University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, as a reward to the city of Le ...

. He taught also in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

Orthez Orthez (; eu, Ortheze; oc, Ortès, ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of New Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the sma ...

Lescar Lescar (; oc, Lescar) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department and Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. Lescar is the site of the Roman city known variously as Benearnum, Beneharnum or Civitas Benarnensium, the loca ...

, and

Castres Castres (; ''Castras'' in the Languedocian dialect, Languedocian dialect of Occitan language, Occitan) is the sole Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Tarn (department), Tarn Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administ ...

Views

Scott Manetsch describes Daneau as a "champion of

orthodoxy, with the expansive vision of expanding and extending the domains of secular knowledge... on the basis of Scripture through the use of the scholastic method of

dialectic Dialectic ( grc-gre, διαλεκτική, ''dialektikḗ''; related to dialogue; german: Dialektik), also known as the dialectical method, is a discourse between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject but wishing ...

." Daneau wrote on many subjects, including a commentary on

Peter Lombard Peter Lombard (also Peter the Lombard, Pierre Lombard or Petrus Lombardus; 1096, Novara – 21/22 July 1160, Paris), was a scholastic theologian, Bishop of Paris, and author of '' Four Books of Sentences'' which became the standard textbook of ...

's ''

Sentences ''The Four Books of Sentences'' (''Libri Quattuor Sententiarum'') is a book of theology written by Peter Lombard in the 12th century. It is a systematic compilation of theology, written around 1150; it derives its name from the ''sententiae'' o ...

'', and a political treatise justifying armed resistance against tyranny. Daneau wrote a book on

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

, ''Dialogus de veneficiis'' (1564). His views on the topic of hunting witches caused trouble for him in Leiden. It was translated, in its 1574 edition, into English by

Thomas Twyne Thomas Twyne (1543 – 1 August 1613 Lewes) was an Elizabethan translator and a physician of Lewes in Sussex, best known for completing Thomas Phaer's translation of Virgil's Aeneid into English verse after Phaer's death in 1560, and for his 1579 ...

as ''A Dialogue of Witches'' (1575). His ''Physica christiana'' (1576) argued for a Scriptural basis for physics. It was translated by Twyne as ''The Wonderfull Workmanship of the World'' (1578).Christopher B. Kaiser, ''Creational Theology and the History of Physical Science: The Creationist Tradition from Basil to Bohr'' (1997), note p. 165.

Notes

* Olivier Fatio, "Lambert Daneau 1530-1595" in Jill Raitt, ed., ''Shapers of Religious Traditions in Germany, Switzerland, and Poland, 1560-1600'' (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1981), pages 105-119.

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Daneau, Lambert 1530s births 1590 deaths French Calvinist and Reformed theologians Witchcraft treatises Demonologists 16th-century French writers 16th-century male writers 16th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians 16th-century French theologians French male writers Theologians from the Republic of Geneva Clergy from the Republic of Geneva Witchcraft in France