Pierre François Xavier de Ram (September 2, 1804,

Leuven Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipalit ...

– May 14, 1865, Leuven), was a Belgian papal prelate,

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

and historian, best known for being the first rector of the new

Catholic University of Belgium 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 instituti ...

, founded in

Mechelen Mechelen (; ; historically known as ''Mechlin'' in EnglishMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical context. T ...

in 1834, which in 1835 moved to

as the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (; ) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) * Katholieke Universiteit Leuven or KU Leuven (1968 ...

Biography

De Ram entered the Major Seminary, Mechelen, where he was ordained in 1827. He was appointed professor of poetry at the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

of Mechelen and archivist of the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

. During the period when King William I was carrying on his campaign against the Catholic faith and traditions of the Belgians, and while de Ram was still young, he took an active part in the struggle maintained by the Belgian clergy against the government of the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, republishing eighteenth century works, in which, in a series of historical studies refuting the doctrines of

Joseph II Joseph II (13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 18 August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 29 November 1780 until his death. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Emperor F ...

, he combatted the latter's disciple, King William I. He was next appointed keeper of the diocesan records and professor in the episcopal seminary at Mechelen. In order to stay the spread of Protestantism in the Netherlands he collaborated with a movement for the publishing of religious works, bringing out (Lives of the most prominent saints and celebrities of the Netherlands). His chief study for many years was

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

, and he published an edition of Butler's ''Lives of the Saints'' (Leuven, 1828–35). Between 1828 and 1858 appeared the ''Synodicon Belgicum'', a collection of unpublished documents upon the ecclesiastical history of the Netherlands since Philip II (Leuven, 4 vols., in quarto). During the years immediately before the Revolution of 1830, de Ram, who was much influenced by Lamennais, was active in bringing about a coalition of Liberals and Catholics against the Dutch government established by the Powers on the fall of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, and in endeavoring to give a democratic character to the policy of his church. He declined to stand as a member of the Belgian assembly, and applied himself wholly to teaching and to editing or composing historical books. De Ram was an active member of

the Royal Academies for Science and the Arts of Belgium The Royal Academies for Science and the Arts of Belgium (RASAB) is a non-governmental association that promotes and organises science and the arts in Belgium by coordinating the national and international activities of its constituent academies su ...

and a foreign associate of the

Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities () is an independent public institution, located in Munich. It appoints scholars whose research has contributed considerably to the increase of knowledge within their subject. The general goal of th ...

. When the monumental project of the

Acta Sanctorum ''Acta Sanctorum'' (''Acts of the Saints'') is an encyclopedic text in 68 folio volumes of documents examining the lives of Christian saints, in essence a critical hagiography, organised by the saints' feast days. The project was conceived and ...

, interrupted in 1794, was resumed by the so-called New

Bollandists The Bollandist Society (; ) is an association of scholars, philologists, and historians (originally all Jesuits, but now including non-Jesuits) who since the early seventeenth century have studied hagiography and the cult of the saints in Christia ...

in 1838, De Ram, who as a young man had bought the whole corpus – to this time 53 volumes in folio – and who himself was considered as a possible member of the board of editors, gave his expert opinion to the Commission royale d’histoire of the Royal Academy recommending warmly the prosecution of the much discussed project. As professor of philosophy at Mechelen he succeeded in bringing about the foundation of the

Catholic University of Mechlin 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 instituti ...

in 1834. This new university stayed only briefly in Mechelen, as the bishops already moved the university headquarters to Leuven on 1 December 1835, where it took the name

, after the suppression of the

State University of Leuven The State University of Leuven () was a university founded in 1817 in Leuven in Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was distinct from the Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) and from the Catholic University of L ...

, where many professors from the old university had taught. This led to further consternation among the Belgian liberal society, which was afraid to see this new (conservative) university usurp the past of the former

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

. It also reinvigorated demands for the foundation of a secular university in Brussels which would lead to the foundation of the Free University of Brussels. De Ram was rector of the new Catholic University of Louvain founded in

Mechlin Mechelen (; ; historically known as ''Mechlin'' in EnglishMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical context. T ...

in 1834 till his death in 1865.

Honours

* Protonotarius Apostolicus * Knight of the Order of Leopold 14 December 1838, Officier on 9 August 1855 * Officier of the

Order of the Oak Crown The Order of the Oak Crown (, , ) is an order (honour), order of the Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. History The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by William II of the Netherlands, Grand Duke William II, who was also King o ...

. * Encomienda of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...

, 9 June 1851 * Knight of the

Order of Saint Hubert The Royal Order of Saint Hubert (), or sometimes () is a Roman Catholic dynastic order of knighthood founded in 1444 or 1445 by Gerhard VII, Duke of Jülich-Berg. He sought to commemorate his victory over the House of Egmond at the Battle of ...

, Bavaria, 3 May 1895 * Knight of the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle () was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful service to the kingdom, o ...

, 2 August 1853 * Commandor of the

Supreme Order of Christ The Supreme Order of Christ () is the highest order of chivalry that can be awarded by the Pope. No appointments have been made since 1987 and following the death in 1993 of the last remaining knight, King Baudouin of Belgium, the order became do ...

, 5 August 1854 * Knight of the

Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order ()Hausorden
Herzogliche Haus Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha was a ...

, 12 August 1854 * member of the Royal Academie, 15 December 1837

References

Sources

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De Ram, Pierre Francois Xavier 1804 births 1865 deaths Writers from Leuven Clergy from Leuven 19th-century Belgian historians 19th-century Belgian male writers Belgian historians of religion 19th-century Belgian Roman Catholic priests Academic staff of the Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968)