Julien Auguste Pélage Brizeux
Encyclopedia
Julien Auguste Pélage Brizeux (b. 12 September 1803 at Lorient
(Morbihan
); d. 3 May 1858 at Montpellier
(Hérault
)) was a French
poet. He was said to belong to a family of Irish
origin, long settled in Brittany
. He was educated for the law, but in 1827 he produced at the Théâtre Français a one-act verse comedy
, Racine, in collaboration with Philippe Busoni.
His most important works are, first, Marie (1832, 1836, 1840), then, Les Bretons (1845, 1846). He also wrote in the Breton language
, notably Telenn-Arvor and Furnez Breiz.
A journey to Italy
in company with Auguste Barbier made a great impression on him, and a second visit (1834) resulted in 1841 in the publication of a complete French translation of Dante's Divine Comedy in terza rima
. In his collection Primel el Nola (1852) he included poems written under Italian influence, entitled Les Ternaires (1841), but in the rustic idyll of Marie (1836) turned to Breton country life; in Les Bretons (1845) he found his inspiration in the folklore and legends of his native province. In La chasse du Prince Arthur he created a narrative around the short life of Arthur I, Duke of Brittany
, murdered by King John
of England. His Histoires poétiques (1855) was crowned by the French Academy.
Though he was brought up with the Cornouaille
dialect of Breton, in his Breton language verse he used the standardised Breton codified by Jean-François Le Gonidec
.
Brizeux was an ardent student of the philology
and archaeology
of Brittany, and had collected materials for a dictionary of Breton place-names.
Following his death at Montpellier
on 3 May 1858, his Œuvres complètes (2 vols., 1860) were edited with a notice of the author by Saint-René Taillandier
. Another edition appeared in 1880-1884 (4 vols.). A long list of articles on his work may be consulted in an exhaustive monograph, Brizeux; sa vie et ses ceuvres (1898), by the abbé C. Lecigne.
Known as "le prince des bardes bretons", he was credited as the founder of modern Breton literature by later Breton Celticists. Théodore Botrel
created a monument to him in Pont-Aven
, which is ceremonially adorned each year at the Fête des Fleurs d’Ajonc. His works in Breton, Telenn Arvor (1844), and his collection of proverbs, Furnez Breiz (1845), were republished by Roparz Hemon
in the Breton language literary magazine Gwalarn
in 1929.
Editions and translations
Postumous publications
Lorient
Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis...
(Morbihan
Morbihan
Morbihan is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan , the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.-History:...
); d. 3 May 1858 at Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
(Hérault
Hérault
Hérault is a department in the south of France named after the Hérault river.-History:Hérault is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
)) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
poet. He was said to belong to a family of Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
origin, long settled in Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
. He was educated for the law, but in 1827 he produced at the Théâtre Français a one-act verse comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
, Racine, in collaboration with Philippe Busoni.
His most important works are, first, Marie (1832, 1836, 1840), then, Les Bretons (1845, 1846). He also wrote in the Breton language
Breton language
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
, notably Telenn-Arvor and Furnez Breiz.
A journey to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in company with Auguste Barbier made a great impression on him, and a second visit (1834) resulted in 1841 in the publication of a complete French translation of Dante's Divine Comedy in terza rima
Terza rima
Terza rima is a rhyming verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking three-line rhyme scheme. It was first used by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri.-Form:Terza rima is a three-line stanza using chain rhyme in the pattern A-B-A, B-C-B, C-D-C, D-E-D...
. In his collection Primel el Nola (1852) he included poems written under Italian influence, entitled Les Ternaires (1841), but in the rustic idyll of Marie (1836) turned to Breton country life; in Les Bretons (1845) he found his inspiration in the folklore and legends of his native province. In La chasse du Prince Arthur he created a narrative around the short life of Arthur I, Duke of Brittany
Arthur I, Duke of Brittany
Arthur I was Duke of Brittany between 1194 and 1202. He was the posthumous son of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany and Constance, Duchess of Brittany...
, murdered by King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
of England. His Histoires poétiques (1855) was crowned by the French Academy.
Though he was brought up with the Cornouaille
Cornouaille
Cornouaille is a historic region in Brittany, in northwest France. The name is identical to the French name for the Duchy of Cornwall, since the area was settled by migrant princes from Cornwall...
dialect of Breton, in his Breton language verse he used the standardised Breton codified by Jean-François Le Gonidec
Jean-François Le Gonidec
Jean François Marie Le Gonidec de Kerdaniel was a Breton grammarian who codified the Breton language.He played an important role in the history of his native language by initiating a reform of its orthography, producing an orderly grammar and making the first Breton translation of the New Testament...
.
Brizeux was an ardent student of the philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
and archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
of Brittany, and had collected materials for a dictionary of Breton place-names.
Following his death at Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
on 3 May 1858, his Œuvres complètes (2 vols., 1860) were edited with a notice of the author by Saint-René Taillandier
Saint-René Taillandier
Saint-René Taillandier was a French writer and critic.He was born René Gaspard Ernest Taillandier, in Paris. He completed his studies in Heidelberg, and then became professor of literature successively in Strasbourg, Montpellier and at the Sorbonne, where he was nominated to the chair of French...
. Another edition appeared in 1880-1884 (4 vols.). A long list of articles on his work may be consulted in an exhaustive monograph, Brizeux; sa vie et ses ceuvres (1898), by the abbé C. Lecigne.
Known as "le prince des bardes bretons", he was credited as the founder of modern Breton literature by later Breton Celticists. Théodore Botrel
Théodore Botrel
Jean-Baptiste-Théodore-Marie Botrel was a French singer-songwriter, poet and playwright. He is best known for his popular songs about his native Brittany, of which the most famous is La Paimpolaise. During World War I he became France's official "Bard of the Armies".-Life:Born in Dinan, Botrel was...
created a monument to him in Pont-Aven
Pont-Aven
Pont-Aven is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Pont-Aven are called in French Pontavenistes.-History:...
, which is ceremonially adorned each year at the Fête des Fleurs d’Ajonc. His works in Breton, Telenn Arvor (1844), and his collection of proverbs, Furnez Breiz (1845), were republished by Roparz Hemon
Roparz Hemon
Roparz Hemon , officially named Louis-Paul Némo, was a Breton author and scholar of Breton expression.He was the author of numerous dictionaries, grammars, poems and short stories...
in the Breton language literary magazine Gwalarn
Gwalarn
Gwalarn was a Breton language literary journal. By extension, the term refers to the style of literature that it encouraged. 166 issues appeared between 1925 and May 1944....
in 1929.
Works
- Racine, one act comedy in verse, with Philippe Busoni, Paris, Théâtre-FrançaisComédie-FrançaiseThe Comédie-Française or Théâtre-Français is one of the few state theaters in France. It is the only state theater to have its own troupe of actors. It is located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris....
, 27 décembre 1827 - Marie, verse novel, 1832 on line text
- Les Ternaires, book of lyrics, 1841
- Les Bretons, narrative poem, 1845
- Furnez Breiz, 1845 Text in Wikisource
- Histoires poétiques, suivies d'un Essai sur l'art, ou Poétique nouvelle, 1855 on line text
- Primel et Nola, 1852
Editions and translations
- Mémoires de Madame de La Vallière, 2 vol., 1829
- La Divine Comédie de Dante Alighieri, traduction nouvelle par A. Brizeux,.avec une notice et des notes par le même, 1841
Postumous publications
- Œuvres complètes, 2 vol., 1860 on line text 1 2
- Œuvres, 1874 on line text
- Œuvres, 4 vol., 1879-1884 on line texts 1 : Marie. Télen Arvor. Furnez Breiz. 2 : Les Bretons. 3 : Les Fleurs d'or (Les Ternaires). Histoires poétiques I-III 4 : Histoires poétiques IV-V. Cycle. Poétique nouvelle.
- Marie, poème. Primel et Nola, preface by Saint-René TaillandierSaint-René TaillandierSaint-René Taillandier was a French writer and critic.He was born René Gaspard Ernest Taillandier, in Paris. He completed his studies in Heidelberg, and then became professor of literature successively in Strasbourg, Montpellier and at the Sorbonne, where he was nominated to the chair of French...
, illustrations by Henri Pille, 1882 - Œuvres choisies, 1910
- Choix de poésies, 1932
- Telenn arvor furnez Breiz peurreizet hag embannet gant Roparz Hemo, 1932
- Un Poète romantique et ses amis : correspondance 1805-1858. Auguste Brizeux, letters, edited by Jean-Louis Debauve, Brest, Centre de recherche bretonne et celtique, 1989