Leopold Janauschek
Encyclopedia
Leopold Janauschek was an Austria
n Cistercian historian.
, Moravia
. In 1846 he received the religious habit at the Cistercian Zwettl Abbey
, Lower Austria, where he was professed in 1848. His superiors then sent him to their house of studies at Heiligenkreuz Abbey
near Vienna, where he studied philosophy and theology. After his ordination to the priesthood he was made professor of history and canon law. His scholarly works attracted attention and won for him in 1858 the chair of ecclesiastical history in the University of Vienna
.
In 1859 he was recalled by his superiors to Heiligenkreuz, where he continued as professor until 1877. During this time he composed his first major work, Originum Cisterciensium Liber Primus (Vienna, 1877), in which he describes the foundation of the Cistercian Order, its organization and extension, and mentions many of those who, under various titles, had honoured it. He gives a lengthy account of 742 ancient abbeys of monks, founded between the end of the 11th and the end of the 17th centuries. The genealogical and chronological tables, as well as the work itself, required a colossal labour of research and compilation. He was unable to publish the second volume, which was to have been devoted to Cistercian nunneries, and for which he had collected a great deal of material. He also published, at this period, a work of lesser importance on the history of the Cistercian Order.
His second major work is Bibliographia Bernardina. In 1891, on the occasion of the eighth centenary of the birth of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the Cistercian Congregation of Austria prepared four volumes, under the title of Xenia Bernardina. Janauschek gave assistance in the preparation of the first three volumes, but the fourth, Bibliographia Bernardina (Vienna, 1891), was entirely his own work. He there discusses successively the different editions of the works of Saint Bernard and their translations, the essays on the life of the saint, various panegyric
s, his biographers, the inscriptions in his honour, the opinions of ecclesiastical historians, etc. The books noticed in Xenia Bernardina amount to 2,761 printed works and 119 manuscripts.
Despite weak health, which for many years permitted him to leave his room only at rare intervals, he worked on until his death in Baden, near Vienna
.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Cistercian historian.
Life
Janauschek was born at BrünnBrunn
Brunn or Brünn may refer to:Places* Brünn, the German form of the Czech city Brno* Brunn, Upper Palatinate, a town in Bavaria, Germany* Brunn, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, a municipality in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany...
, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
. In 1846 he received the religious habit at the Cistercian Zwettl Abbey
Zwettl Abbey
Zwettl Abbey is a Cistercian monastery located in Zwettl in Lower Austria, in the Diocese of St. Pölten.- History :Zwettl Abbey was founded in 1137 by Hademar I of Kuenring, with Herrmann, a monk of Heiligenkreuz Abbey, as its first abbot . It was a daughter house of Heiligenkreuz, of the line of...
, Lower Austria, where he was professed in 1848. His superiors then sent him to their house of studies at Heiligenkreuz Abbey
Heiligenkreuz Abbey
Heiligenkreuz Abbey is a Cistercian monastery in the village of Heiligenkreuz in the southern part of the Vienna woods, c. 13 km north-west of Baden in Lower Austria...
near Vienna, where he studied philosophy and theology. After his ordination to the priesthood he was made professor of history and canon law. His scholarly works attracted attention and won for him in 1858 the chair of ecclesiastical history in the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
.
In 1859 he was recalled by his superiors to Heiligenkreuz, where he continued as professor until 1877. During this time he composed his first major work, Originum Cisterciensium Liber Primus (Vienna, 1877), in which he describes the foundation of the Cistercian Order, its organization and extension, and mentions many of those who, under various titles, had honoured it. He gives a lengthy account of 742 ancient abbeys of monks, founded between the end of the 11th and the end of the 17th centuries. The genealogical and chronological tables, as well as the work itself, required a colossal labour of research and compilation. He was unable to publish the second volume, which was to have been devoted to Cistercian nunneries, and for which he had collected a great deal of material. He also published, at this period, a work of lesser importance on the history of the Cistercian Order.
His second major work is Bibliographia Bernardina. In 1891, on the occasion of the eighth centenary of the birth of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the Cistercian Congregation of Austria prepared four volumes, under the title of Xenia Bernardina. Janauschek gave assistance in the preparation of the first three volumes, but the fourth, Bibliographia Bernardina (Vienna, 1891), was entirely his own work. He there discusses successively the different editions of the works of Saint Bernard and their translations, the essays on the life of the saint, various panegyric
Panegyric
A panegyric is a formal public speech, or written verse, delivered in high praise of a person or thing, a generally highly studied and discriminating eulogy, not expected to be critical. It is derived from the Greek πανηγυρικός meaning "a speech fit for a general assembly"...
s, his biographers, the inscriptions in his honour, the opinions of ecclesiastical historians, etc. The books noticed in Xenia Bernardina amount to 2,761 printed works and 119 manuscripts.
Despite weak health, which for many years permitted him to leave his room only at rare intervals, he worked on until his death in Baden, near Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.