WOBO: Search for words and phrases in the texts here...

, a very learned German, was thg son of a peasant of Suabia, and born at Veringen in the county of Hohenzollern in 1493. He pursued his studies in Pfortsheim at the same time with Melancthon, which gave rise to a lasting friendship between them. He then went for farther instruction to Vienna, and there taking the degree of master in philosophy* was appointed Greek professor. Having embraced the protestant religion, he was exposed to many dangers; and particularly in Baden, of which he was some years rector of the school. He was thrown into prison at the instigation of the friars; but at the solicitation of the nobles of Hungary, was set at liberty, and retired to Wittemberg, where he had a conference with Luther and Melancthon. Being returned to his native country, he was invited to Heidelberg, to be Greek professor in that city, in 1523. He exercised this employment till 1529, when he was invited to Basil to teach publicly in that city. In 1531, he took a journey into England, and carried with him a recommendatory letter from Erasmus to William Montjoy, dated Friburg, March 18, 1531. After desiring Montjoy to assist Grynaeus as much as he could, in shewing him libraries, and introducing him to learned men, Erasmus recommends him as a man perfectly skilled in Latin and Greek, a good philosopher and mathematician, and a man of humble manners, whose object was to visit the libraries, &c. Erasmus recommended him also to sir Thomas More, from whom he received the highest civilities, In 1534, he was employed, in conjunction with other persons, in reforming the church and school of Tubingen. He returned to Basil in 1536, and in 1540 was appointed to go to the conferences of Worms, with Melancthon, Capito, Bucer, Calvin, &c. He died, of the plague at Basil in 1541.

, a very learned German, was born of a good family at Wismar, a town in the duchy of Mecklenburg, Feb. 6, 1639. After some school education at Wismar, he was sent in his sixteenth year to Stetin, where he studied philosophy under John Micraelius, Hebrew under Joachim Fabricius, and civil law under John Sithrnan; without neglecting, in the mean time, the belles lettres, which he had principally at heart. In 1657, he removed to Rostock, in order to continue the study of the law; but in consequence of his “Lessus in Ciconiam Adrianum, carmen juvenile et ludicrum,” published in quarto, he was chosen professor of poetry in 1660. The same year he made a journey into Holland and England, resided some time in the university of Oxford, and then returned to his employment at Rostock. He published, in 1661, “Dissertatio de enthusiasmo et furore poetico,” 4to; and, at Franeker, where he took his doctor’s degree, he published his thesis “De jure silentii,” 1661, 4to. At Rostock he remained until 1665, when the duke of Holstein, having founded an university at Kiel, engaged him to accept the professorship of poetry and eloquence. In 1670, he made a second journey into Holland and England, contracting the acquaintance and friendship of learned men in every place as he passed along. He saw Gnevius at Utrecht, J. Frederic Gronovius at Leyden, Nicolas Heinsius at the Hague, &c. In England he conversed much with Isaac Vossius, and with the hon. Robert Boyle. He admired Boyle so much, that he translated one of his philosophical works into Latin, and published it at Hamburgh in 1671. Returning to his own country, he was twice in danger of losing his life. He was near being shipwrecked in his passage over the water; and he had like to have been crushed to death by the fall of a great quantity of books, and paper, while he was amusing himself in Elzevir’s shop at Amsterdam. The first of these dangers was rumoured in his own country, before his arrival; and his being drowned was so firmly believed, that several elegies were made upon his death. He married at Kiel in Ib71; two years after was made professor of history; and, in 16SO, librarian of the university. His extreme ardour for study for some time supported him in composing his numerous works, and discharging his official duties but his constitution at length sunk under so many labours and his illness, being increased by drinking Pyrmont- waters, carried him off July 30, 16.91. His death is also supposed to have been hastened by his excessive grief for the loss of his wife in 1687.

, a very learned German, to whom the republic of letters has been considerably indebted, was born at Antwerp, Sept. 12, 1552; and educated at Louvain. Upon the taking and sacking of Antwerp in 1577, he retired to Douay; and, after some stay there, went to Paris, where Busbequius received him into his house, and made him partner of his studies. Two years after, he went into Spain, and was at first at Madrid; then he removed to Alcala, and then in 1580 to Toledo, where his great reputation procured him a Greek professorship. The cardinal Gaspar Quiroga, abp. of Toledo, conceived at the same time such an esteem for him, that he lodged him in his palace, and entertained him as long as he remained in that place. In 1584, he was invited to Saragossa, to teach rhetoric and the Greek language; and, two years after, entered into the society of Jesuits, and was called by the general of the order into Italy to teach rhetoric at Rome, He continued three years there., and then returned to his own country, where he spent the remainder of a long life in study and writing books. He was not only well skilled in Latin and Greek learning, but had also in him a candour and generosity seldom to be found among the men of his order. He had an earnest desire to oblige all mankind, of what religion or country soever and would freely communicate even with heretics, if the cause of letters could her served: hence protestant writers every where mention him with respect. He died at Antwerp Jan. 23, 1629, after having published a great number of books. Besides works more immediately connected with and relating to his own profession, he gave editions of, and wrote notes upon, several of the classics; among which were Aurelius Victor, Pomponius Mela, Seneca Rhetor, Cornelius Nepos, Vale* rius Flaccus, &c. He wrote the life of Francis di Borgia, and “Hispania illustrata,” 4 vols. folio, hut there are reasons for doubting whether the “Bibliotheca Hispana,” $ vols. in one, 4to, was a publication of his own; it seems rather to have been compiled from his Mss. He published, however, an edition of Basil’s works, and is said to have translated Photius; but this has been thought to be so much below the abilities and learning of Schott, that some have questioned his having been the author of it.

, a very learned German, was descended from ancient and noble families; and born at Aurach, a town of Franconia, Dec. 20, 1626. He made good use of a liberal education, and was not only a master of the French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew languages, but had also some skill in mathematics and the sciences, The great progress he made in his youth coming to the ears of Ernest the pious, duke of Saxe-Goth'a, this prince sent for him from Cobourg, where he then was, to be educated with his children. After remaining two years at Gotha, he went, in 1642, to Strasbnrg; but returned to Gotha in. 1646, and was made honorary librarian to the duke. In 1651, he was made an lie and ecclesiastical counsellor; and, in 1663, a counsellor of state, first minister, and sovereign director of the consistory. The year after, he went into the service of Maurice, duke of Saxe-Zeist, as counsellor of state and chancellor; and was no less regarded by this new master than he had been by the duke of SaxeGotha. He continued with him till his death, which happened in 1681; and then preferred a life of retirement, during which he composed a great many works; but Frederic III. elector of Brandenburg, again brought him into public life, and made him^. counsellor of state and chancellor of the university of Halle, dignities which he did not enjoy long, for he died at Halle Dec. 18, 1692, in the sixty-sixth year of his age. He was twice married, but had only one son, who survived him. Besides his knowledge of languages, he was learned in law, history, divinity; and is also said to have been a tolerable painter and engraver. Of his numerous writings, that in most estimation for its utility, was published at Francfort, 1692, 2 vols. folio, usually bound up in one, with the title, “Commentarius Historicus & Apologeticus de Lutheranisrno, sive de lleformatione Religionis ductu D. Martini Lutberi in magna Germania, aliisque regionibus, & speciatim in Saxonia, recepta & stabilita,” &c. This work, which is very valuable on many accounts, and particularly curious for several singular pieces and extracts that are to be found in it, still holds its repu^ tation, and is referred to by all writers on the reformation.

a very learned German, was born at Frankfort Feb. 22, 1683, and was the son of a counsellor of that city, of an antient family. In 1694 he was sent for education to the college of Rudelstadt, where he applied with such ardour that his master was obliged to check him, and especially prevent his studying by night, to which he was much addicted. Besides the classics, which, young as he was, he always read with a pen in his hand, making such remarks or extracts as struck his fancy, he studied also the Hebrew language, and logic, and metaphysics, to which he soon added history, geography, chronology, &c. In 1698 he was obliged to return home to recover his health, which had probably been injured by intense application, and he for some time confined himself to lessons on history and geography from Arnold, then rector of the college of Frankfort. He was afterwards sent to the university of Strasburgh, where he studied the sciences, attended the anatomical lectures, &c. but his leading object was literary history and bibliography, in pursuit of which he passed much of his time in the public libraries. In 1700 he had the misfortune to lose both his parents, which obliged him to return to Frankfort. When his grief had in some degree subsided, he went to Halle, and continued his studies there about two years. In 1702 he took his degree of doctor of laws, and returned to Frankfort with a copious library, which he had collected in the course of his studies. He then visited some of the most famous universities on the continent; but in 1704 settled at Frankfort, where the library he formed was then considered among the best in Europe. To make it still more complete appears to have been the object of his ambition, and he re-commenced his travels for that purpose in 1708 and 1709. In one of those years he was at Oxford, and had some inducement to settle there, but imagined that the climate would not agree with his health. When he returned to Frankfort from these tours in 1711, he brought an addition of four thousand books to his collection. In 1721 he was made a senator of his native city, but became now so diligent in his civic duties as to have little time to spare to his studies, which inclined him in 1729 to publish a catalogue of his library, with a view to dispose of a considerable part of it. He died Jan. 6, 1734, universally regretted. He had begun several learned works, which his employments as a magistrate, and afterwards his bad state of health, prevented his finishing; among these were, 1. “Glossarium Germanicum medii sevi.” 2. A history of his life, in Latin. 3. “Selecta historiae litterariae et librarian,” in several volumes. These he bequeathed to John George Schelhorn, along with his literary correspondence in eighteen large quarto volumes. In 1736 John Christ. Wolff printed an account of two collections made by Uffembach, which he had just purchased 3 the first consisting of an immense quantity of letters, mostly originals, written by the eminent men of the two or three preceding centuries the second comprized various curious Mss. on literary subjects. Schelhorn, in his “Amcenitates litterariaB,” has availed himself much of UfFembach’s collections; and in vol. IX. has an article entitled “Deprimitiis typographicis, quae Haerlemi in civica et Francoforti in bibliotheca Uffembachiana adservantur.” And he afterwards published a Life of Uffembach, prefixed to his “Cornmercii Epistolaris Uffembachiani Selecta, &c.” 5 vols. 1753 1756, 8vo.

, a very learned German, was the son of a reputable tradesman, and born at Nuremberg in 1633. He was sent early to a school at Stockholm; whence he was taken at thirteen, and placed in the university of Altorf. The distinction, to which he there raised himself by his abilities and learning, recommended him to some nobility as a proper tutor to their children; and, after continuing five years at Altorf, he was taken into the family of the count de Traun. He not only performed the office of an instructor to the sons of this nobleman, but accompanied them in their travels to France, Spain, England, Holland, several parts of Germany, and Italy. He contracted an acquaintance with the learned wherever he went, and received honours from several universities: those of Turin and Padua admitted him into their body. In France, he experienced the liberality of Lewis XIV. and was received doctor of law, at Orleans, in June 1665. Several places would have detained him, but the love of his native country prevailed; and, after travelling for six years, he arrived at Nuremberg in 1667. He was immediately made professor of law and history in the university of Altorf; but, about eight years after, changed his professorship of history for that of the Oriental tongues. In 1676, Adolphus John, count Palatine of the Rhine, committed two sons to his care, and at the same time honoured him with the title of counsellor. The princes of Germany held him in high esteem; and the emperor himself admitted him to private conferences, in 1691, when he was at Vienna about business. In 1697, the town of Nuremberg gave him marks of their esteem, by adding to his titles that of doctor of canon law, and by committing the university-library to his care. He was twice married; the first time in 1667, the second in 1701. He died in 1706, aged seventy-two.