The Life of the Truly Eminent and Learned Hugo Grotius Part 1

The Life of the Truly Eminent and Learned Hugo Grotius.

by Jean Levesque de Burigny.

PREFACE.

_It were to be wished that such a celebrated Genius as_ Grotius _had found an Historian equal to his fame: for in this high rank we can by no means place those who have contented themselves with giving a superficial account of his Life, and a catalogue of his Works. M._ Lehman, _to whom we owe_ Grotius's Ghost revenged, _is much fuller than any that went before him; yet he is far from having taken in all that deserves to be known of that ill.u.s.trious writer, the two most interesting Distinctions of whose Life have been entirely neglected by all who have spoken of him; I mean his Negotiations, and his sentiments in matters of Religion._

Gaspar Brandt _and_ Adrian Cattenburg _have indeed published a long Life of_ Grotius; _but the_ Dutch _language, in which they wrote, is so little known, that their book cannot be of general use; with a view to which we have made choice of a more universal language, to communicate farther light concerning this excellent man, whom every one speaks of, tho' few with any certainty._

_His being one of the most learned Authors that ever wrote, was not our sole motive for compiling his Life: for if we consider him only in that light, and with regard to the excellent treatises with which he has enriched the Republic of Letters, perhaps others may be found to compare with him. But his Life was so diversified, and filled with so many revolutions, that what regards literature is not the most curious part of it; greatly differing, in this respect, from the generality of men of letters, whole Lives are only the histories of their works. Besides_, Grotius's _prudence on all occasions, his modesty in prosperity, his patience in adversity, his steadiness in his duty, his love of virtue, his eagerness in the search of truth, and the ardent desire which he constantly maintained for uniting Christians in one Faith, distinguish him so advantageously from most other Scholars, that his Life may be proposed as a model to all who make profession of literature._

_It is divided into six Books. The first presents us with the brightest genius ever recorded, of a Youth, in the history of the republic of letters. The second contains all that is worth being known of the disputes between the_ Gomarists _and_ Arminians; _the part_ Grotius _took in them; his disgrace, and the manner of his escape out of prison.

The third relates his transactions at_ Paris, _and his retreat to_ Hamburg, _where he continued till the great Chancellor_ Oxensteirn _sent for him, to employ him in the important and honourable post of Amba.s.sador from_ Sweden _to the Court of_ France. _The fourth and fifth Books give a detail of his Negotiations; which have never yet been published. We have been accustomed to consider_ Grotius _only as a Scholar; his emba.s.sy is known but by report: we shall see, however, that he was employed in affairs of the greatest importance; that he succeeded in several; that he gave excellent counsels to the ministry; and that he always conducted himself with zeal, firmness, and integrity._

_The sixth and last Book gives an account of such of his Works as we had not occasion to mention before; and examines particularly his theological sentiments, and his project for a coalition of Christians, and bringing them to unite in one creed._

BOOK I.

I. The learned and ill.u.s.trious Writer whose Life we undertake to give, derived the name of Grotius from his great-grandmother, married to Cornelius Cornets. This was a Gentleman of Franche-Compte, who travelled into the Low-Countries about the beginning of the sixteenth century, and coming to Delft, got acquainted with a Burgomaster who had an only daughter: He took a liking to her, asked, and obtained her in marriage.

The name of this magistrate was Diederic de Groot, or Diederic the Great; his family was of the first distinction in the country; and had produced several persons of great merit[2]. It is said the name of Great was given to one of Diederic's ancestors, above four hundred years ago, for a signal service done his country; and it has been observed[3]

that all who bore the name of De Groot distinguished themselves by their zeal for the public.

Diederic de Groot had several important employments, in which he acquitted himself with great honour. The name of his only daughter was Ermengarda de Groot: Her father, on giving his consent to her marriage, insisted that the children should bear the name of De Groot; and Cornelius Cornets agreed to it in the marriage contract. There were several branches of the Cornets: one settled in Provence, as we are informed by[4] Grotius.

FOOTNOTES:

[2] Acad. Leid. ed. 1614.

[3] Vita Grotii ap. Batesium, p. 420.

[4] Ep. 264. ad Peyresc. p. 91.

II. Cornelius Cornets had by his marriage with Ermengarda de Groot a son named Hugo de Groot, distinguished by his knowledge of the Greek and Latin, and his skill in the Hebrew. He died in 1567, fifth time Burgomaster of Delft. He married Elselinga Heemskerke, of one of the ancientest n.o.ble families in Holland, and by her had two sons, Cornelius, and John de Groot.

III. Cornelius de Groot, eldest son of Hugh, was born at Delft on the 25th of July, 1544. He studied with much success at the University of Louvain, at that time very famous. The Greek and Hebrew he knew perfectly, and was well acquainted with the Mathematics. The Platonic Philosophy pleased him extremely, and he retained a liking to it all his life: he had read all the books of the sect, had commented their works, and knew them almost by heart.

The Law wholly took him up afterwards: he went to study it at the faculty of law at Orleans, the most celebrated for that science, and took the degree of Licentiate. Returning home he followed the Bar; some time after, he was nominated Counsellor and Echevin: William prince of Orange made him Master of Requests.

The University of Leyden being founded in 1575, Cornelius de Groot resigned his post in the magistracy, to follow his ruling inclination of being useful to youth; and did not think it beneath him to accept of a Professor's place in the new University: he first taught Philosophy, and was afterwards made Law-professor; an employment that pleased him so much, he preferred it to a seat in the Grand Council at the Hague, which was several times offered him, but which he constantly refused. His reputation was so great, the Grand Council often consulted with him on affairs of importance. Six times he was honoured with the dignity of Rector, a place of great honour and authority: the members of the University, and all who are enrolled in the Rector's book, depend on his jurisdiction; before him their causes, civil and criminal, are brought, and from his sentence there is no appeal: a revisal of it is all that can be demanded. Cornelius de Groot died without issue in the year 1610, on the same day of the month of July on which he was born. He left several Law Tracts which have never been printed.

IV. John de Groot, brother to Cornelius and second son of Hugh, studied under the famous Justus Lipsius, who esteemed him much: in some letters of that learned man to John de Groot he speaks of him with great commendation. There is one, written in 1582, in which Lipsius tells him, "You have loved the Muses, they have loved you, they will love you, and I too with them will love you." We have still preserved by his son[5] a translation in verse, made by him in his youth of some Greek verses of Palladas. He also wrote a Paraphrase on the Epistle of St. John; which Hugo Grotius mentions in one of his Letters[6].

Four times he was Burgomaster of Delft, and Curator of the University of Leyden: this last was a place of great consequence at that time. There are only three Curators in the University of Leyden; one is taken from the body of the n.o.bility, and nominated by them; the two others are chosen by the States of the Province from among the cities of Holland, or the Courts of Justice.

The Curators with the Burgomasters of Leyden have the direction of whatever regards the welfare and advantage of the University; they chuse the Professors, and have the care of the finances and revenues for payment of their salaries.

John de Groot filled the place of Curator with great dignity and honour.

Daniel Heinsius wrote some verses in his praise, in which he styles him the Apollo and Protector of the Muses.

This dignity did not hinder him from taking the degree of Doctor of Laws. In the remaining part of his life he attached himself to the Count of Hohenloo, who made him his Counsellor.

In 1582 he married Alida Averschie, of one of the first families in the Country; by whom he had three sons and a daughter. He died in the month of May 1640. In the same year his wife lost her eyesight; she lived till the beginning of the year 1643[7].

FOOTNOTES:

[5] Stobaeus, t.i.t. 98. p. 413.

[6] Ep. xxii. p. 751.

[7] Ep. 499. p. 898. Grotii Ep. 638. p. 948.

V. Of the marriage of John de Groot with Alida Averschie was born the celebrated Hugo de Groot, better known by the name of Grotius: he was the first fruit of their coming together. Almost all who have mentioned his birth[8] fix it on the tenth of April 1583. The President Bouhier pretends they place it a year too late; and that he was born on the tenth of April 1582. To prevent the authority of such a learned man, which has already seduced several writers, from misleading others, we shall shew that by departing from the general opinion he has fallen into an error. Grotius writes to Vossius on Easter Sunday 1615[9], that on that day he reckoned thirty-two years: He dates another letter[10] to Vossius the twenty-fifth of March 1617; Easter-eve, "which, he observes, begins my thirty-fifth year." April 11, 1643, he says he had completed sixty years[11]. On Easter-day 1644 he reckons sixty-one years[12]. He acquaints us in his Poems[13], that he was fifteen when he went first to France: he went there in 1598; and speaking of Easter 1614 he informs us[14] he was then one-and-thirty. From all these different calculations it is manifest that Grotius was born in 1583.

It must be owned, however, that the proof on which the President Bouhier builds his opinion, would be decisive, if there were no error in the text of a[15] letter written by Grotius to his brother, April 14, 1640, in which he says, "I have completed my fifty-eighth year:" but the other pa.s.sages of Grotius just cited demonstrate that the editors of this letter, instead of _incepi_, I have begun, read _implevi_, I have completed: which Grotius could not have written without contradicting himself.

FOOTNOTES:

[8] Athenae Batavae, p. 205. Life of Grotius prefixed to his works. Le Clerc, Hist. de Hollande, l. 12. t. 2. See the critical Remarks on Bayle's Dict. ed. 1734.

[9] Ep. 55. p. 18.

[10] Ep. 95. p. 41.

[11] Ep. 648. p. 952.

[12] Ep. 697. p. 965.

[13] Page 213.

[14] Poemata, p. 217.

[15] Ep. 491. p. 896.

VI. It was therefore on the tenth of April in the year 1583, that Grotius was born, at Delft. It was Easter-Sunday that year: and he always observed the anniversary of that feast as his birth-day[16].

He came into the world with the most happy dispositions. Nature bestowed on him a profound genius, a solid judgment, and a wonderful memory.

Several authors report[17] that being employed to review some regiments he retained the name of every soldier. He was but eight years old, when, in 1591, he wrote some elegiac verses, very pretty for that age: afterwards he thought them not good enough to publish. M. le Clerc informs us, that he had seen a copy of them in the possession of a very able man, who purposed to write the life of Grotius.