Wein van Cotthem (c. 1390 – July 1457) (alternative spellings: ''Iwein'', ''Iweijn'' or ''Weinken'';

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

: ''Ywanus de Cotthem'') was a Brussels clerk, chaplain and chronicler. He has been identified as the man who wrote a continuation of the '' Brabantsche Yeesten'' in the years 1430-1432. He added two books to the first five by Jan van Boendale, with a total of 12,000 verses. His autograph, now in the

Royal Library of Belgium The Royal Library of Belgium (french: Bibliothèque royale de Belgique, nl, Koninklijke Bibliotheek van België, abbreviated ''KBR'' and sometimes nicknamed in French or in Dutch) is the national library of Belgium. The library has a history t ...

, would provide fodder for many later chroniclers. The ducal court accounts first mention him in 1402 as a chorister (a ''jonghen clercken, singers op die capelle'')., ''Middeleeuws kladwerk. De autograaf van de Brabantse Yeesten, boek VI (vijftiende eeuw)'', Hilversum, Verloren, 2009, blz. 47
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/ref> He was ordained a priest and from 1429 was given the responsibility of the chapel of

Dry Borren Dry Borren (French language, French: ''Trois-Fontaines''; Latin: ''Tres Fontes'') is a historic site in the Sonian Forest in the municiaplity Auderghem, Belgium. It was originally a hunting lodge of the dukes of Brabant, built on a site where thr ...

in the Sonian Forest, where he said mass four times a week. Nevertheless, he had two daughters: one by a nun in Brussels and another, Hélin, by his maidservant. He lived there in a house built against the

keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...

. He was a student of

Petrus de Thimo Petrus de Thimo, Latinized name of Peter van der Heyden (1393 - 26 February 1474), was a Brabantine chronicler and a lawyer employed by the city of Brussels, of which he became Pensionary in 1423. He is considered one of the most important 15th-cen ...

and

Emond de Dynter Emond Ambrosii de Dynter (or: Emond van Dinther) (c. 1370 – 1449) was a descendant of the noble family Van Dinther, originating from the village of the same name Dinther in Brabant. From 1412 he was secretary to the Brussels chancery of four su ...

. Later he probably also became canon of St. Vincent's Church (''Sint-Vincentiuskerk'') in

Zinnik Soignies (; nl, Zinnik, ; pcd, Sougniye; wa, Sougniye) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It consists of the following districts: Casteau, Chaussée-Notre-Dame-Louvignies, Horrues, Naast, Neufvilles, Soi ...

. The fact that Van Cotthem was chosen by De Thimo for the commission of the ''Brabantsche Yeesten'' might have to do with his acquaintance with the court. De Thimo could have come into contact with Van Cotthem through his family, which, like the Brussels pensionary's, was closely intertwined with Brussels administrative life: the Van Cotthem belonged to the second of the seven noble houses of Brussels, the Sweerts, and several members of the family held the office of alderman in Brussels.

Bibliography

*, ''Middeleeuws kladwerk. De autograaf van de Brabantse Yeesten, boek VI (vijftiende eeuw)'', Hilversum, Verloren, 2009, 370 blz.

References

{{reflist Burgundian Netherlands poets 14th-century births 1457 deaths Flemish poets Chroniclers from the Holy Roman Empire