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Milan, 1478. His body was carried to Florence, and buried in the church of the Carthusians. The small fortune he left his children is a proof of his probity and disinterestedness. His daughter, like those of Aristides, were married at the public expense, as an acknowledgment of his services. His funeral eulogium was spoken by Christopher Ladini; and an elegant epitaph, by Politian, was inscribed on his tomb.

JULIANA BERNERS, daughter of Richard Berners of Berners Roding, and sister of Lord Berners, was born at Roding in Essex. She is celebrated by various authors as very learned, and doubtless had the best education that could be obtained in that age, as she was appointed prioress of Sopewell nunnery, near St. Alban's, about 1460, or rather earlier. She was very beautiful, and was fond of masculine exercises, such as hunting, hawking, &c. She wrote treatises on these subjects, as well as upon Heraldry, which were so popular, that they were published in the very infancy of printing. Her treatise on hunting is written in rhyme, and affords a strong evidence of the barbarity of that age; as it abounds with indelicacies equally unworthy of her sex and profession. The book on heral dry begins with the following curious piece of ancient heraldry: "Of the offspring of the gentilman Jafeth, (she certainly meant Shem,) came Habraham, Moyses, Aron, and the Prosettys; and also the kyngs of the right lyne of Mary, of whom that gentilman Thesus was borne, very God and man; after his manhode kynge of the land of Jude and of Jues, gentilman by his modre Mary, prince of cote armure, &c." The time of her death is not known.

GREGORY TIPHERNAS, a literary character, a native of Tifernum in Italy. He understood Greek, and translated into Latin that part of Strabo, which Guarinus Veronensis had left untranslated.

NICOLO PEROTTI, one of the early Italian literati, was born in 1430. He was educated under Volpe at Bologna, and after finishing his studies, became himself a professor in that city, first of polite literature, and then of philosophy. He made himself known by various translations of Greek authors into the Latin language. As early as 1452, or 1453, he sent to pope Nicholas V. his version of the three first books of Polybius, to which he afterwards added two more, all that were then known of that author. He subsequently translated Epictetus's Enchiridion, the Commentary of Simplicius upon Aristotle's Physics, and Tatian's Oration to the Greeks. He was made poet laureat to the emperor Frederic III., and was employed in high official situations by several of the popes. He was particularly attached to cardinal Bessarion, whose conclavist he was after the death of Paul II. On this occasion it has been said, that some cardinals coming to wait on Bessarion, with the

purpose of saluting him pope, were refused admission by Perotti, on the plea that he was engaged in his studies; and that after the election of cardinal Riario, Bessarion coolly said to him, "By your untimely care, you have lost me the tiara, and yourself a hat." He was, however, appointed to honourable offices under the court of Rome, being made governor of Umbria in 1465; of Spoleto in 1471; and of Perugia in 1474. He died in 1480. His writings are numerous, but his most celebrated work was entitled "Cornucopia," being a diffuse and learned Commentary on Martial's book on Spectacles, and the first book of his epigrams. It was not published till after his death; it contains a measure of erudition respecting the Latin language.

AURELIUS BRANDOLINUS, surnamed Lippus, from his being blear-eyed, was born at Florence, and was esteemed a great writer, orator, poet, and musician. Matthias Corvinus, king of Hungary, invited him to teach oratory in his dominions; which he did many years at Buda and Strigonia with great suecess. On his return to Florence he took orders, and preached to the most crowded audiences. He died at Rome, of the plague, in 1498. He wrote several works which were esteemed; particularly, a Commentary on St. Paul's Epistles; a Treatise De Lege; two books of Christian Paradoxes; three books, De Ratione Scribendo; a dialogue De humanæ vitæ conditione, et tollenda coporum ægritudine; dedicated to king Matthias; and, the Scripture histories in heroic verse.

ISOTTA NOGAROLA, a Veronese lady, well versed in philosophy, theology, and the learned languages. In a dialogue on the question whether Adam was a greater sinner than Eve in eating the forbidden fruit, she ably defended the cause of the mother of mankind, against Louis Foscaro, who maintained a different opinion. She died 1468, aged 38. No less than 566 of her letters were preserved in de Thou's library.

MARTIO GALEOTI, or GALEOTUS MARTIUS, a native of Narni, in the papal territory. He became a preceptor of youth at Bologna, but afterwards removing to Hungary, he was noticed by Matthias Corvinus the king, who admitted him into his family, made him private secretary, and committed to him the education of his son John Corvinus. He was also keeper of the library at Buda. In this situation, Lewis XI., of France, hearing of his fame invited him into his kingdom; Galeoti proceeded to meet Lewis at Lyons, but the king happening to come out of the city, they met without the gates, and Galeoti, descending hastily to pay due respect to the king, fell, and being extremely corpulent, was so much injured that he very soon expired, in 1481, Galeoti published a collection of the bon-mots of Matthias Corvinus. He also wrote some other works, a miscellany of physical, medical, and

astronomical questions. For some of his sentiments the monks accused him of heresy, but he was protected by pope Sixtus IV., who had been his pupil.

JOHN ANNIAS, or NANNIAS, a native of Viterbo, was born in 1432, and acquired an extensive knowledge of Greek, Latin, and the oriental languages. He was a dominican friar, and a famed pulpit orator. He was invited to Rome, and was highly respected by the popes Sixtus IV., and Alexander VI. In 1499, Alexander made him master of the sacred palace. Annias, however, did not find it very easy to preserve the favour of such profligate characters as Alexander, and his son Cæsar Borgia, but the duchess de Valentinois, the virtuous wife of Cæsar, rendered Annias every service in her power. Her husband at last determined to free himself from Annias, and, it is thought, procured him to be poisoned. He died by some means, Nov. 13, 1502, in his seventieth year. He wrote 17 books of antiquities, pretended to be the remains of several eminent ancient authors, particularly Manetho, Archilochus, and Xenophon, which were printed in 1498, folio. The fraud was well managed, and imposed for a time upon several learned men.

FRANCIS PATRIZI, bishop of Gayette, an Italian author: He wrote several works, besides ten dialogues in Italian, on the manner of writing and studying history, which are much esteemed. He died in 1494.

CHRISTOPHER LANDINO, an Italian scholar, was born at Florence in 1434. He studied first at Volterra, under Angioli da Todi, by whom he was so much beloved, that he not only maintained him a long time at his own expense, but at his death bound his heirs to support him three years longer. He was intended by his father for the law, and was by him obliged to pursue it till he obtained the liberal patronage of Cosmo and Peter de Medici, by which he was enabled to return to his favourite pursuits, and indulge himself in the study of Platonic philosophy. He became one of the chief ornaments of the Platonic academy at Florence, and lived in strict friendship with Poliziano, Ficino, and others of its members. In 1457, he gave public lectures on polite literature at Florence, which contributed to the progress of learning in that period. At an advanced age he obtained an office in the state, and was presented with a palace for his residence. He died in 1504, at Porto Vecchio. His Latin poems have been printed, and also his notes on Virgil, Horace, and Dante. He translated Pliny's Natural History into Italian prose.

AUGUSTIN PATRICIUS, was a native of Sienna, and descended from an illustrious family. In 1460 he was appointed secretary to pope Pius II., who conceived an affection for him, and caused him to assume the surname of Picolomini.

Patrizi was master of the ceremonies in 1468, when the emperor Frederic III. went to Rome a second time. In 1482 he was made bishop of Pienza and Montalcino, which see he enjoyed till his death in 1496. He wrote several books.

SIGISMUND FULGINUS, is ranked among the learned of this period. He wrote a history of his own times. He was in the service of Julius II., and he is one of the chief interlocutors in Bembus's dialogue de Urbini Ducibus.

ISAAC ABRABANEL, ABARLANEL, or AVRAVANEL, a celebrated Rabbi, born at Lisbon, in 1437, and pretended to be descended from king David. He was employed by Alphonso V., king of Portugal; but on the accession of John II., he shared the disgrace of the ministry, and fled to Spain, where he applied himself to literature. His fame recommended him to Ferdinand and Isabella, but when the Jews were banished from Castile, he yielded to the storm, and found an asylum at the court of Ferdinand of Naples, but upon the defeat of the next monarch, Alphonso, by the French, he retired to Corfu, and at last to Venice, where he died in 1508, in his 71st year. His writings are chiefly commentaries or explanations of Scripture. The various persecutions which he, and other Jews suffered, soured his temper, and produced an implacable hatred against the Christians, which he has manifested in his writings; though, in company with them, he behaved with great politeness, and was cheerful in conversation. He was an assiduous student, and a very ready writer.

FRANCIS MARIUS GRAPÁLDUS, of Parma, born about 1440. He distinguished himself so much in an embassy to the pope, that Julius II. crowned him with his own hand. He wrote a book in which he described all the parts of a house with great judgment and taste.

URBANO VALERIANO BOLZANI, an eminent character in the revival of letters, was born at Belluno, about 1440. He was of the order of Minorites, and employed much of his time in travelling, which he always performed on foot. He traversed Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Arabia, Greece, and Thrace, and made judicious observations on every thing curious, both in nature and art. He twice climbed the summit of Etna, to survey its crater. He continued down to old age to make an annual tour through some of the Italian provinces, till an accident injured one of his legs. His fixed residence was at Venice, where he instructed a great number of scholars in the Greek language. Among other eminent persons, he had for disciples the learned Gian-antonio Flamio, and John de Medici, afterwards pope Leo X. He deserves grateful commemoration as the first who rendered the study of Greek easier by composing a Latin grammar of that language. Of this work the first edition was printed in 1497. A second, much enlarged, ap

peared in 1512, and others afterwards. Bolzani died in 1524,

in his 84th year.

FRANCIS COLONNA, a Venetian dominican, who wrote a romance fraught with mythological learning, of very little importance, but on account of its scarcity and whimsical composition, has been translated into French by John Martin, Paris, 1561, fol. The author died May 17, 1520, in his 80th year.

RODOLPHUS AGRICOLAĂ, a learned writer, was born in Friesland, in 1442 and educated at Louvain; after which he settled at Ferrara, and taught Latin with great reputation. Here he studied Greek, and attended the philosophical lectures of Theodore Gaza. In 1477 he returned to the Netherlands, and in 1482 settled in the Palatinate, giving occasional lectures at Heidelburg and Worms. He died at the former place in 1484. It is said, that on the subject of religion he had a glimpse of that light, which rose on the world in the next age, and that, in conversation, he deplored the darkness, and censured the superstitions of the times in which he lived. Neither his natural temper, nor his course of study was, however, such as to qualify him for the character of a reformer. Fond of ease and leisure, and devoted to study, he declined every kind of public office or stated occupation; he even refused to encounter the cares and fatigues of the married state; and his homage to the sex is said to have been confined to the easy task of writing elegant verses, and practising music, vocal and instrumental, for their amusement. It was not to be expected, that a man of so indolent a disposition would take the trouble to enlighten and reform the world. Yet his life was by no means either dishonourable to himself or useless to society. In an age when such exertions were much wanted, he contributed largely to the restoration of learning, and the revival of taste. He was the first who introduced the Greek language into Germany. His works were printed at Louvain 1516, and at Cologne in 1539, 4to.

DOMINIC JACOBAZZI, in Latin Jacobatius, a learned Italian cardinal, born at Rome, about the year 1443. He was employed by pope Sixtus IV., and five of his successors, in several affairs of importance. Pope Julius II. made him vicar of Rome, and president of the university in that city. He was also instituted to the sees of Massano and Grosseto. The last promotion which he received was that to the rank of cardinal, to which he was elevated by pope Leo X., in the year 1517. He died about 1527. The most important of his works was "a Treatise concerning the Councils," in Latin, which was originally published at Rome in 1538, in a folio volume. This edition is become extremely scarce.

BERNARDINE MAFFÆUS, a learned cardinal, who wrote a commentary on Cicero's Epistles, and a Treatise on Medals and Inscriptions. He died in 1529.

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