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Philips of Marnix, Lord of Saint-Aldegonde, Lord of West-Souburg (Dutch: Filips van Marnix, heer van Sint-Aldegonde, heer van West-Souburg, French: Philippe de Marnix, seigneur de Sainte-Aldegonde; 7 March/20 July 1540 – 15 December 1598) was a Flemish and Dutch writer and statesman, and the probable author of the text of the Dutch
national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...
, the ''
Wilhelmus "Wilhelmus van Nassouwe", known simply as "Wilhelmus", or written with the article as "Het Wilhelmus", is the national anthem of both the Netherlands and its sovereign state, the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It dates back to at least 1572, makin ...
''.


Biography - career

Marnix of St. Aldegonde was born in
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, the son of Jacob of Marnix. He studied
theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...
under
John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...
and
Theodore Beza Theodore Beza (; or ''de Besze''; 24 June 1519 – 13 October 1605) was a French Calvinist Protestant theologian, reformer and scholar who played an important role in the Protestant Reformation. He was a disciple of John Calvin and lived most ...
at
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
. Returning to the
Habsburg Netherlands Habsburg Netherlands were the parts of the Low Countries that were ruled by sovereigns of the Holy Roman Empire's House of Habsburg. This rule began in 1482 and ended for the Northern Netherlands in 1581 and for the Southern Netherlands in 1797. ...
in 1560, he threw himself into the cause of the
Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...
, taking an active part in the compromise of the nobles in 1565 and the assembly of
Sint-Truiden Sint-Truiden (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium. With more than 41,500 inhabitants, it is on ...
. He issued a pamphlet in justification of the iconoclastic movement
Beeldenstorm ''Beeldenstorm'' () in Dutch and ''Bildersturm'' in German (roughly translatable from both languages as 'attack on the images or statues') are terms used for outbreaks of destruction of religious images that occurred in Europe in the 16th centu ...
which devastated many churches in
Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...
in 1566, and on the Duke of Alba's arrival next year had to flee the country. After spending some time in
Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...
and in the
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he was in 1570 taken into the service of William, prince of Orange, and in 1572 was sent as his representative to the first meeting of the States-General assembled at
Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Western Netherlands, lo ...
. In 1573 he was taken prisoner by the
Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...
at
Maaslandsluys Maassluis () is a town in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of in and covered of which was water. It received town rights in 1811. History Maassluis was founded circa 1340 as a se ...
, but was exchanged in the following year. He was sent as the representative of the insurgent provinces to
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and
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, where he attempted in vain to secure the effective assistance of Queen,
Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...
. In 1578 he was at the
Diet of Worms The Diet of Worms of 1521 ( ) was an Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire), imperial diet (a formal deliberative assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire called by Emperor Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V and conducted in the Imperial Free City o ...
, where he made an eloquent, but fruitless, appeal for aid to the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
princes. Equally vain were his efforts in the same year to persuade the magistrates of
Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...
to cease persecuting the
Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
in the city. He took a conspicuous part in arranging the
Union of Utrecht The Union of Utrecht () was an alliance based on an agreement concluded on 23 January 1579 between a number of Habsburg Netherlands, Dutch provinces and cities, to reach a joint commitment against the king, Philip II of Spain. By joining forces ...
. In 1583 was chosen
burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...
of
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. In 1585 he surrendered the city, after the months' Siege of Antwerp, to the Spaniards. Attacked by the English and by his own countrymen for this act, he retired from public affairs and, save for a mission to Paris in 1590, lived henceforth in
Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...
or on his estate in
Zeeland Zeeland (; ), historically known in English by the Endonym and exonym, exonym Zealand, is the westernmost and least populous province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the southwest of the country, borders North Brabant to the east ...
, where he worked at a translation of the
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
. His daughter Elizabeth married Sir Charles Morgan, a Welsh mercenary serving with the
Dutch States Army The Dutch States Army () was the army of the Dutch Republic. It was usually called this, because it was formally the army of the States-General of the Netherlands, the sovereign power of that federal republic. This army was brought to such a size ...
who ended his career as Governor of
Bergen op Zoom Bergen op Zoom (; called ''Berrege'' in the Brabantian dialect, local dialect) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in southwestern Netherlands. It is located in the Province ...
. He died in
Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...
on 15 December 1598.


Literary work

St. Aldegonde, or Marnix (by which name he is very commonly known), is celebrated for his share in the great development of Dutch literature which followed the classical period represented by such writers as the poet and historian Pieter Hooft. Of his works, the best known is the ''Roman Bee-hive'' (''De roomsche byen-korf''), published in 1569 during his exile in Friesland, a bitter satire on the faith and practices of the Roman Catholic Church. This was translated, or adapted, in French, German and English (by George Gilpin). He also wrote an educational treatise dedicated to John, Count of Nassau. As a poet, St. Aldegonde is mainly known through his metrical translation of the
Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...
(1580/1591); and, the Dutch national anthem '' Wilhelmus van Nassouwe'' is also ascribed to him. His complete works, edited by Lacroix and Quinet, were published at Brussels in 7 volumes (1855–1859), and his religious and theological writings, edited by Van Toorenenbergen, at The Hague, in 4 volumes (1871–1891). Marnix wrote one of the earliest Bible translations into Dutch. Less known to the general public is his work as a cryptographer. St. Aldegonde is considered to be the first Dutch
cryptographer Cryptography, or cryptology (from "hidden, secret"; and ''graphein'', "to write", or '' -logia'', "study", respectively), is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of adversarial behavior. More gen ...
(cfr. ''
The Codebreakers ''The Codebreakers – The Story of Secret Writing'' () is a book by David Kahn (writer), David Kahn, published in 1967, comprehensively chronicling the history of cryptography from ancient Egypt to the time of its writing. The United States gover ...
''). For Stadholder
William the Silent William the Silent or William the Taciturn (; 24 April 153310 July 1584), more commonly known in the Netherlands as William of Orange (), was the leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish Habsburg Netherlands, Habsburgs that set off the ...
, he deciphered secret messages that were intercepted from the
Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...
. His interest in cryptography possibly shows in the ''
Wilhelmus "Wilhelmus van Nassouwe", known simply as "Wilhelmus", or written with the article as "Het Wilhelmus", is the national anthem of both the Netherlands and its sovereign state, the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It dates back to at least 1572, makin ...
'', where the first letters of the couplets form the name ''Willem van Nassov'', i.e. William 'the Silent' of Nassau, the Prince of Orange, but such
acrostic An acrostic is a poem or other word composition in which the ''first'' letter (or syllable, or word) of each new line (or paragraph, or other recurring feature in the text) spells out a word, message or the alphabet. The term comes from the Fre ...
s - and far more intricate poetic devices - were a common feature of the Rederijker school in the Lowlands. There is a marble sculpture of him by Paul de Vigne in Brussels. Marnix could speak Spanish, and this influenced his writing style.«Sans doute l'Espagne ne fut représentée dans notre pays que par un petit nombre de fonctionnaires groupés dans le grand centre administratif qu'était Bruxelles et les organismes centraux indigènes, comme les organismes provinciaux et locaux, continuèrent-ils ainsi que par le passé à être gérés par des nationaux et à employer les langues nationales; cependant, à partir du gouvernement de Marguerite de Parme et surtout à l'arrivée du duc d'Albe, l'espagnol fut mis à l'honneur à la Cour et devint plus familier aux grands seigneurs et aux hauts fonctionnaires. Quel effet ce bilinguisme plus ou moins parfait pouvait-il exercer sur le français, il est permis d'en juger par l'apparition de mots espagnols dans le correspondances comme celle de Granvelle, et mieux encore par la prose de Marnix de Sainte-Aldegonde. Contrairement à la plupart des écrivains français de la Renaissance, celui-ci était un excellent connaisseur de l'espagnol, et notamment dans le Tableau des différends de la Religion, des mots et des expressions espagnoles viennent souvent émailler de façon pittoresque ou narquoise le contexte français; pareils traits seraient inexplicables s'ils n'étaient pas destinés à des lecteurs ayant au moins la connaissance de quelques rudiments d'espagnol. A la Cour, des troupes de comédiens espagnols venaient donner des représentations» —Herbillon, Jules. Éléments espagnols en wallon et dans le français des anciens Pays-Bas, 23–24. Mémoires de la Commission royale de toponymie et de dialectologie. Section wallonne 10. Liège: Michiels, 1961.


See also

* House of Coloma * Marnixstraat * Bornem Castle * Saint Aldegonde


References


Sources and references

* *
Edgar Quinet Edgar Quinet (; 17 February 180327 March 1875) was a French historian and intellectual. Biography Early years Quinet was born at Bourg-en-Bresse, in the ''département'' of Ain. His father, Jérôme Quinet, had been a commissary in the army, ...

''Marnix de St Aldegonde''
(Paris, 1854) * Théodore Juste
''Vie de Marnix''
(The Hague, 1858); Frédéricq, ''Marnix en zijnenederlandsche geschriften'' (Ghent, 1882) * Tjalma, ''Philips van Marnix, heer van Sint-Aldegonde'' (Amsterdam, 1896) * 'On the Education of Youth', trans. Robert de Rycke in 'History of Education Quarterly', Summer 1970) {{DEFAULTSORT:Marnix Van St. Aldegonde, Philips Van 1540 births 1598 deaths Poets from the Habsburg Netherlands Dutch people of the Eighty Years' War (United Provinces) 16th-century cryptographers Dutch nobility Belgian nobility Diplomats from Brussels Burials at Pieterskerk, Leiden National anthem writers 16th-century Calvinist and Reformed theologians Dutch Calvinist and Reformed theologians Mayors of Antwerp, Belgium Writers from Brussels