Paul Allard
Encyclopedia
Paul Allard was a French
archaeologist, historian
and jurist
.
He was admitted to the bar
and practised law for a short time in his native city, where he became a judge of the civil court. His literary and his historical tastes induced him to abandon his profession and devote himself to the history of the Catholic Church in its first four centuries.
He contributed frequently to the Revue des Questions Historiques, of which he became editor in 1904, and to various other publications. In 1874 he translated James Spencer Northcote
and W. R. Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, making many additions and annotations to it.
An intimate acquaintance with Giovanni Battista De Rossi
and his own studies along various lines, led him to undertake a history of the persecutions suffered by the Christians at the hand of the Roman authorities. Paul Allard and Alexander de Richemont were all closely united to De Rossi
by the interests of their common work. The work was planned on very broad lines. Allard had a minute knowledge of Christian archaeology, especially in regard to the Roman Catacombs; he had studied the condition of the Christian slaves, and had a thorough acquaintance with epigraphy
and the administrative and constitutional history of Rome.
, though the acceptance of Christianity by the people necessarily implied the eradication of the old Roman beliefs. The action of the Roman authorities he regarded as ill-advised and brutal. According to Allard, their treatment of the Christians arose from no reasons of statesmanship or adherence to traditional policy, but was based entirely on low and unworthy motives.
The causes of the persecutions he finds in the blind hatred of the Roman authorities against this "third race", in fanatic
ism, popular fury, or, as in the case of Maximus
and Decius
, very largely in private spleen.
His conclusions have not been generally accepted.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
archaeologist, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
and jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
.
He was admitted to the bar
Bar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
and practised law for a short time in his native city, where he became a judge of the civil court. His literary and his historical tastes induced him to abandon his profession and devote himself to the history of the Catholic Church in its first four centuries.
He contributed frequently to the Revue des Questions Historiques, of which he became editor in 1904, and to various other publications. In 1874 he translated James Spencer Northcote
James Spencer Northcote
James Spencer Northcote was an English Catholic priest and writer.-Life:...
and W. R. Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, making many additions and annotations to it.
An intimate acquaintance with Giovanni Battista De Rossi
Giovanni Battista de Rossi
Giovanni Battista de Rossi was an Italian archaeologist, famous outside his field for his rediscovery of early Christian catacombs.-Life and works:He was born in Rome...
and his own studies along various lines, led him to undertake a history of the persecutions suffered by the Christians at the hand of the Roman authorities. Paul Allard and Alexander de Richemont were all closely united to De Rossi
Giovanni Battista de Rossi
Giovanni Battista de Rossi was an Italian archaeologist, famous outside his field for his rediscovery of early Christian catacombs.-Life and works:He was born in Rome...
by the interests of their common work. The work was planned on very broad lines. Allard had a minute knowledge of Christian archaeology, especially in regard to the Roman Catacombs; he had studied the condition of the Christian slaves, and had a thorough acquaintance with epigraphy
Epigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...
and the administrative and constitutional history of Rome.
His conclusions
The main idea of Allard's History of the Persecutions is that the Christians were unjustly treated by the Roman authorities. He did not acknowledge any incompatibility between the spread of Christianity and the permanence of the Roman EmpireRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, though the acceptance of Christianity by the people necessarily implied the eradication of the old Roman beliefs. The action of the Roman authorities he regarded as ill-advised and brutal. According to Allard, their treatment of the Christians arose from no reasons of statesmanship or adherence to traditional policy, but was based entirely on low and unworthy motives.
The causes of the persecutions he finds in the blind hatred of the Roman authorities against this "third race", in fanatic
Fanaticism
Fanaticism is a belief or behavior involving uncritical zeal, particularly for an extreme religious or political cause or in some cases sports, or with an obsessive enthusiasm for a pastime or hobby...
ism, popular fury, or, as in the case of Maximus
Maximus
Maximus is the Latin term for "greatest" or "largest". In this connexion it is used to refer to:*Circus Maximus *Pontifex Maximus, the highest priest of the ancient Roman College of Pontiffs...
and Decius
Decius
Trajan Decius , was Roman Emperor from 249 to 251. In the last year of his reign, he co-ruled with his son Herennius Etruscus until they were both killed in the Battle of Abrittus.-Early life and rise to power:...
, very largely in private spleen.
His conclusions have not been generally accepted.
Works
His principal works are- Rome souterraine (ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, 1874) - Les esclaves Chrétiens depuis les premiers temps de L'Eglise jusqu'a la fin de la domination romaine en occident, (Paris, 1876)
- L'art païen sous les empereurs chrétiens (Paris, 1879)
- Histoire des persécutions pendant les deux premiers siècles (2d ed., Paris, 1892)
- Histoire des persecutions pendant la premiere moitié du troisième siecle (Paris, 1881)
- La persecution de Diocletien et le triomphe de l'Eglise (2 vols., Paris, 1890)
- Le Christianisme et l'empire romain (Paris, 1896)
- Etudes d'histoire et d'archeologie (Paris, 1898)
- St. Basile (ibid, 1899)
- Julien l'apostat, 2 vols. (ibid, 1900).