, commonly called Du Cange, a learned Frenchman, was descended from a good
, commonly called
Du Cange, a learned Frenchman, was descended from a
good family, and born at Amiens in 1610. After being
taught polite literature in the Jesuits college there, he went
to study the Jaw at Orleans, and was sworn advocate to the
parliament of Paris in 1631. He practised some time at
the bar, but without intending to make it the business of
his life. He then returned to Amiens, where be devoted
himself to study, and ran through all sorts of learning,
languages and philosophy, law, physic, divinity, and history. In 1668, he went and settled at Paris; and soon
after a proposal was laid before Colbert, to collect all the
authors who at different times had written the history of
France, and to form a body out of them. This minister
liking the proposal, and believing Du Fresne the best
qualified for the undertaking, furnished him with memoirs
and manuscripts for this purpose. Du Fresne wrought
upon these materials, and drew up a large preface, containing the names of the authors, their character and manner, the time in which they lived, and the order in which
they ought to be arranged. Being informed from the
minister that his plan was not approved, and that he must
adopt another, and convinced that if he followed the order
prescribed, the whole work would be spoiled, he frankly
told his employers that since he had not been happy enough
to please those in authority, his advice was, that they
should look out some of the best hands in the kingdom;
and at the same time he returned them all their memoirs.
(See Bouquet). Being thus disengaged from a tedious
and laborious undertaking, he finished his Glossary of low
Latin, or “Glossarium Mediæ et infimæ Latinitatis,
”
which was received with general commendation; and though
Hadrian Valesius, in his preface to the Valesiana, notes
everal mistakes in it, it is nevertheless a very excellent
and useful work. It was afterwards enlarged by the addition
of more volumes; and the edition of Paris, by Carpentier,
in 1733, makes no less than six in folio; to which Carpentier afterwards added four of supplement. Both have
been since excellently abridged, consolidated, and improved, in 6 vols. 8vo, published at Halle, 1772 1784.
His next performance was a “Greek Glossary of the middle
age,
” consisting of curious passages and remarks, most
of which are drawn from manuscripts very little known.
This work is in 2 vols. folio. He was the author and editor
also of several other performances. He drew a genealogical map of the kings of France. He wrote the history
of Constantinople under the French emperors, which was
printed at the Louvre, and dedicated to the king. H
published an historical tract concerning John Baptist’s
head, some relics of which are supposed to be at Amiens.
He published, lastly, editions of Cinnamus, Nicephorus,
Anna Commena, Zonaras, and the Alexandrian Chronicon, with learned dissertations and notes.