Claude de Seyssel
Encyclopedia
Claude de Seyssel was a Savoyard
jurist and humanist, now known for his political writings. He wrote La Grande Monarchie de France as a supporter of the French crown, in the person of Louis XII. Written around 1515, in French, it was published 1519; it supports hereditary monarchy
.http://vlib.iue.it/carrie/texts/carrie_books/gilbert/21.html A Latin translation De Republica Galliae was printed in 1548 in Strasbourg.
as the bastard son of Claude de Seyssell, marshall of Savoy. He studied law and theology in Chambéry
, Turin
and Pavia
. He graduated in 1485 and started teaching at the university of Turin. In 1499, he became a counsellor to King Louis XII of France
, and was charged with various embassies to Italy and England. He praised the French king in Histoire singuliere de Louis XII (A Biography of Louis XII) (1508) and in Les louanges de Louis XII (In Praise of the King)(1509). To extricate himself from the dispute opposing Louis XII to Pope Julius II, he withdrew for a while from politics; in 1512, however, he went back to Rome to present his credentials to the new pope, Leo X. This was the apex of his diplomatic career. After the death of Louis XII in 1515, he gave up politics. The same year he was made bishop of Marseille.
His best-known work, written at the instigation of King Francis I of France
, was
Le grant monarchie de France (1518). He is considered as one of the best examples of French political thinking in the early 16th century. Seyssel had a very positive opinion of the French monarchy and constitution. He thought the power wielded by the monarch was both controlled and balanced, being limited by religion, existing laws and justice. His ideas were very influential in the 16th century. Later French thinkers adopted a different stance and distanced themselves from his beliefs.
He was made Archbishop of Turin, in 1517, through the king's influence.
He also wrote on the Salic law
, composed propaganda after the French victory over the Venetians
, and worked as a translator of ancient historians, including Appianus of Alexandria.
Savoyard
Savoyard is a Romance language group with several distinct varieties that form a linguistic subgroup from the Arpitan language family. It is spoken in some territories of the historical Duchy of Savoy, nowadays a geographic area spanning France , Switzerland , and Italy...
jurist and humanist, now known for his political writings. He wrote La Grande Monarchie de France as a supporter of the French crown, in the person of Louis XII. Written around 1515, in French, it was published 1519; it supports hereditary monarchy
Hereditary monarchy
A hereditary monarchy is the most common type of monarchy and is the form that is used by almost all of the world's existing monarchies.Under a hereditary monarchy, all the monarchs come from the same family, and the crown is passed down from one member to another member of the family...
.http://vlib.iue.it/carrie/texts/carrie_books/gilbert/21.html A Latin translation De Republica Galliae was printed in 1548 in Strasbourg.
Biographie
Seyssel was born in Aix-les-BainsAix-les-Bains
Aix-les-Bains is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It is situated on the shore of Lac du Bourget, by rail north of Chambéry.-Geography:...
as the bastard son of Claude de Seyssell, marshall of Savoy. He studied law and theology in Chambéry
Chambéry
Chambéry is a city in the department of Savoie, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.It is the capital of the department and has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made the city his seat of power.-Geography:Chambéry...
, Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
and Pavia
Pavia
Pavia , the ancient Ticinum, is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Pavia. It has a population of c. 71,000...
. He graduated in 1485 and started teaching at the university of Turin. In 1499, he became a counsellor to King Louis XII of France
Louis XII of France
Louis proved to be a popular king. At the end of his reign the crown deficit was no greater than it had been when he succeeded Charles VIII in 1498, despite several expensive military campaigns in Italy. His fiscal reforms of 1504 and 1508 tightened and improved procedures for the collection of taxes...
, and was charged with various embassies to Italy and England. He praised the French king in Histoire singuliere de Louis XII (A Biography of Louis XII) (1508) and in Les louanges de Louis XII (In Praise of the King)(1509). To extricate himself from the dispute opposing Louis XII to Pope Julius II, he withdrew for a while from politics; in 1512, however, he went back to Rome to present his credentials to the new pope, Leo X. This was the apex of his diplomatic career. After the death of Louis XII in 1515, he gave up politics. The same year he was made bishop of Marseille.
His best-known work, written at the instigation of King Francis I of France
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
, was
Le grant monarchie de France (1518). He is considered as one of the best examples of French political thinking in the early 16th century. Seyssel had a very positive opinion of the French monarchy and constitution. He thought the power wielded by the monarch was both controlled and balanced, being limited by religion, existing laws and justice. His ideas were very influential in the 16th century. Later French thinkers adopted a different stance and distanced themselves from his beliefs.
He was made Archbishop of Turin, in 1517, through the king's influence.
He also wrote on the Salic law
Salic law
Salic law was a body of traditional law codified for governing the Salian Franks in the early Middle Ages during the reign of King Clovis I in the 6th century...
, composed propaganda after the French victory over the Venetians
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
, and worked as a translator of ancient historians, including Appianus of Alexandria.
External links
Further reading
- Rebecca Ard Boone, War, Domination, and the Monarchy of France: Claude de Seyssel and the Language of Politics in the Renaissance (Leiden, Brill, 2007) (Brill's Studies in Intellectual History, 156).