Henrich Smet
Encyclopedia
Henrich Smet (29 June 1535 or 1537—15 March 1614) Heidelberg
was a physician and humanist scholar.
(1552–54). He met several students there that like him would eventually make a name for themselves in the world of letters. Barely fifteen, he translated the Gnomae Pythagorae ac Phocylidis the Batrachomyomachia of Homer and the Historia Susannae from Latin and also displayed skill in the Latin poetry. He studied medicine at Leuven, Rostock
and Heidelberg and took his doctorate in 1561 in Bologna
. He established a medical practice in Antwerp. As a result of his Protestant convictions, he left Antwerp during the tumult of 1567 for Duisburg
. He then moved to Lemgo
and was the court physician of the Count of Lippe
. In 1574 he moved to Heidelberg and became court physician to the Elector Palatine, Frederick III
. When Frederick died in 1576, he was succeeded by his Lutheran son Elector Louis VI
who removed the Reformed
faculty from the University of Heidelberg, Smet briefly practiced medicine in Frankenthal
. After 1579 he entered the service of Count Palatine Johann Casimir and began to give medical lectures in the Casimirianum
in Neustadt. He returned to the University of Heidelberg with the rest of the medical faculty in 1585 after Johann Casimir became the regent of the Palatinate.
Besides medicine, he was interested in philology and poetry. He compiled a dictionary of Latin words, which was so successful that it was frequently reprinted throughout the seventeenth century.
Many letters from Smet from the period 1585-93 are preserved in the archive of the University of Heidelberg.
Smet married Johanna van den Corput in 1562, sister of the humanist and pastor Hendrik van den Corput.
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
was a physician and humanist scholar.
Life
Smet was the son of Robert Smet (d. 1540) and initially studied with John Otho in GhentGhent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
(1552–54). He met several students there that like him would eventually make a name for themselves in the world of letters. Barely fifteen, he translated the Gnomae Pythagorae ac Phocylidis the Batrachomyomachia of Homer and the Historia Susannae from Latin and also displayed skill in the Latin poetry. He studied medicine at Leuven, Rostock
University of Rostock
The University of Rostock is the university of the city Rostock, in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.Founded in 1419, it is the oldest and largest university in continental northern Europe and the Baltic Sea area...
and Heidelberg and took his doctorate in 1561 in Bologna
University of Bologna
The Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna is the oldest continually operating university in the world, the word 'universitas' being first used by this institution at its foundation. The true date of its founding is uncertain, but believed by most accounts to have been 1088...
. He established a medical practice in Antwerp. As a result of his Protestant convictions, he left Antwerp during the tumult of 1567 for Duisburg
Duisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
. He then moved to Lemgo
Lemgo
Lemgo is a city in the Lippe district of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of c. 42,000.It was founded in the 12th century by Bernhard II at the crossroad of two merchant routes. Lemgo was a member of the Hanseatic League, a medieval trading association of free cities in several...
and was the court physician of the Count of Lippe
Principality of Lippe
Lippe was a historical state in Germany. It was located between the Weser River and the southeast part of the Teutoburg forest.-History:...
. In 1574 he moved to Heidelberg and became court physician to the Elector Palatine, Frederick III
Frederick III, Elector Palatine
Frederick III of Simmern, the Pious, Elector Palatine of the Rhine was a ruler from the house of Wittelsbach, branch Palatinate-Simmern-Sponheim. He was a son of John II of Simmern and inherited the Palatinate from the childless Elector Otto-Henry, Elector Palatine in 1559...
. When Frederick died in 1576, he was succeeded by his Lutheran son Elector Louis VI
Louis VI, Elector Palatine
In the history of the Holy Roman Empire, Louis VI, Elector Palatine was an Elector from the Palatinate-Simmern branch of the house of Wittelsbach. He was the first-born son of Frederick III, Elector Palatine and Marie of Brandenburg-Kulmbach...
who removed the Reformed
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
faculty from the University of Heidelberg, Smet briefly practiced medicine in Frankenthal
Frankenthal
Frankenthal is a town in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.- History :Frankenthal was first mentioned in 772. In 1119 an Augustinian monastery was built here, the ruins of which — known, after the founder, as the Erkenbertruine — still stand today in the town...
. After 1579 he entered the service of Count Palatine Johann Casimir and began to give medical lectures in the Casimirianum
Casimirianum Neustadt
The Casimirianum in Neustadt an der Haardt was a Reformed academy, which was founded in 1578 by Count Palatine Johann Casimir and named after him. The Casimirianum only endured five years...
in Neustadt. He returned to the University of Heidelberg with the rest of the medical faculty in 1585 after Johann Casimir became the regent of the Palatinate.
Besides medicine, he was interested in philology and poetry. He compiled a dictionary of Latin words, which was so successful that it was frequently reprinted throughout the seventeenth century.
Many letters from Smet from the period 1585-93 are preserved in the archive of the University of Heidelberg.
Smet married Johanna van den Corput in 1562, sister of the humanist and pastor Hendrik van den Corput.
Works
- Henrici Smetii (...) Juvenilia sacra regnum judaïcorum. Heidelberg, 1594.
- Henrici Smetii, Parentalia (...). Heidelberg, 1594.
- Miscellanea (...) Medica. Frankfurt: Jonas Rhodius, 1611. VD 17 23:290916S
- Oratio de febri tertiana intermittente. Heidelberg, 1587.
- Prosodia Henrici Smetii, med. d. prontissima (...). Frankfurt, 1599.
- Prosodia in novam formam digesta. Amsterdam, bij H. & T. Boom, 1683, (One of the many reprints of the work of 1599)
- Ueber Alter und Vortrefflichkeit der Medicin: aus dem Lateinischen des Henricus Smetius a Leda, ed. Gustav Waltz. 1889.
Further reading
- Biographie Nationale, L'Académie Royale des sciences, des lettres et des beaux arts de Belgique. vol. 5, 762. Brussels, 1876.
- Wilhelm Kühlmann and Joachim Telle. “Humanismus und Medizin an der Universität Heidelberg im 16.Jahrhundert.” In Semper Apertus: Sechshundert Jahre Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg 1386-1986, ed. Wilhelm Doerr et al., 1:255-89. Berlin: Springer, 1985.