Pierre Helyot
Encyclopedia
Friar Hippolyte Hélyot, T.O.R., (1660–1716) was a Franciscan
friar
and priest of the Third Order of St. Francis
and a major scholar of Church history. He was born at Paris
in January 1660, supposedly of English ancestry.
Christened
Pierre at his birth, after spending his youth in study, he entered, in his twenty-fourth year, the friary of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, founded in Picpus
-—now part of Paris—-by his uncle, Jérôme Hélyot, a canon regular of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher
. There he took the religious name under which he gained his reputation as a historian.
Two journeys to Rome
on business of the Order afforded him the opportunity of traveling over most of Italy
; and after his final return he saw much of France, while acting as secretary to various provincial superiors of his Order. Both in Italy and France he was engaged in collecting materials for his great work, which occupied him for about twenty-five years. It was titled L'Histoire des ordres monastiques, religieux et militaires, et des congregations séculières de l'un et de l'autre sexe, qui ont été établis jusqu'à présent (The History of the Religious and Military Monastic Orders, and of the Secular Congregations of both Sexes, which have been established up to the Present Day). The History was published as a five-volume work, from 1714 until 1721.
Hélyot died on January 5, 1716, before the fifth volume appeared, but his friend and colleague, Friar Maximilien Bullot, T.O.R., completed the edition. His only other noteworthy work is Le Chrétien maurani (1695).
His History is a work of first importance, being the great repository of information regarding the general history of the religious order
s up to the end of the 17th century. Hélyot gave detailed information about the foundation--and, where appropriate, the decline--of the various groups. It is profusely illustrated by large plates exhibiting the religious habit
s of the various Orders, and in the edition of 1792 the plates are colored. It was translated into Italian
(1737) and into German
(1753). The material was arranged in an alphabet
ical dictionary form by M. L. Badiche, for inclusion in Migne
's Encyclopédie théologique, under the title "Dictionnaire des ordres religieux" (5 vols., I 858).
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
and priest of the Third Order of St. Francis
Third Order of St. Francis
The Third Order of St. Francis is a third order within the Franciscan movement of the Roman Catholic Church. It includes both congregations of vowed men and women and fraternities of men and women living standard lives in the world, usually married...
and a major scholar of Church history. He was born at Paris
Paris
Paris 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...
in January 1660, supposedly of English ancestry.
Christened
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
Pierre at his birth, after spending his youth in study, he entered, in his twenty-fourth year, the friary of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, founded in Picpus
Picpus
Picpus may refer to:* Cimetière de Picpus, a cemetery in Paris*The Picpus Fathers, an order of the Catholic Church, whose official name is the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary*Picpus, a journal edited by Charles Asprey and Simon Grant...
-—now part of Paris—-by his uncle, Jérôme Hélyot, a canon regular of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher
Order of the Holy Sepulchre
The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem is a Roman Catholic order of knighthood under the protection of the pope. It traces its roots to Duke Godfrey of Bouillon, principal leader of the First Crusade...
. There he took the religious name under which he gained his reputation as a historian.
Two journeys to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
on business of the Order afforded him the opportunity of traveling over most of 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...
; and after his final return he saw much of France, while acting as secretary to various provincial superiors of his Order. Both in Italy and France he was engaged in collecting materials for his great work, which occupied him for about twenty-five years. It was titled L'Histoire des ordres monastiques, religieux et militaires, et des congregations séculières de l'un et de l'autre sexe, qui ont été établis jusqu'à présent (The History of the Religious and Military Monastic Orders, and of the Secular Congregations of both Sexes, which have been established up to the Present Day). The History was published as a five-volume work, from 1714 until 1721.
Hélyot died on January 5, 1716, before the fifth volume appeared, but his friend and colleague, Friar Maximilien Bullot, T.O.R., completed the edition. His only other noteworthy work is Le Chrétien maurani (1695).
His History is a work of first importance, being the great repository of information regarding the general history of the religious order
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
s up to the end of the 17th century. Hélyot gave detailed information about the foundation--and, where appropriate, the decline--of the various groups. It is profusely illustrated by large plates exhibiting the religious habit
Religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of garments worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognisable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anachoritic life, although in their case without conformity to a particular uniform...
s of the various Orders, and in the edition of 1792 the plates are colored. It was translated into Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
(1737) and into German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(1753). The material was arranged in an alphabet
Alphabet
An alphabet is a standard set of letters—basic written symbols or graphemes—each of which represents a phoneme in a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it was in the past. There are other systems, such as logographies, in which each character represents a word, morpheme, or semantic...
ical dictionary form by M. L. Badiche, for inclusion in Migne
Jacques Paul Migne
Jacques Paul Migne was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely-distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a universal library for the Catholic priesthood.He was born at Saint-Flour, Cantal and studied...
's Encyclopédie théologique, under the title "Dictionnaire des ordres religieux" (5 vols., I 858).