Background
Guillaume Bude was born in Paris, France on January 26, 1467; son of Jean Bude (d. 1502) and Catherine Le Picart.
Guillaume Bude was born in Paris, France on January 26, 1467; son of Jean Bude (d. 1502) and Catherine Le Picart.
His university education at Orleans and Paris centered on the study of law and the "liberal studies, " especially Greek.
Bude was basically a lawyer turned humanist. His interest in the classics was demonstrated by his translation of three of Plutarch's treatises into Latin (1502 - 1505). Bude's abilities brought him to the attention of King Louis XII, who sent him to Rome as his ambassador at the coronation of Pope Julius II in 1502. After this mission, Bude became secretary to the King, a position he held until 1515. During this period Bude produced two works that displayed his superb scholarly abilities and his interest in law and classical antiquity. His work on Roman law, Annotationes in XXIV Pandectarum Libros (1508; Notes on Twenty-four books of the Pandects ), was a milestone in the Renaissance humanist attack on medieval jurisprudence. Bude's aim was to eliminate corruptions and misreadings from the medieval versions of Roman law. His second work of this period was De asse et partibus (1515; On the As and Its Parts), a treatise on ancient coins and measures, in which he attempted to determine their exact values in antiquity and their modern equivalents. This work required an exhausting and critical examination of the ancient authors, and it earned Bude the reputation of being among the foremost scholars of his day.
In 1515 Bude was again sent to Rome, this time on a diplomatic mission to Pope Leo X. Under the new king, Francis I, Bude was eventually made a master of the royal library. In this position, he urged the King to establish a college for the study of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew. Since Francis I did not immediately respond, Bude gave supplementary encouragement in additional literary works. In the preface to his Commentarii linguae Graecae (1529; Commentaries on the Greek Language ), which he intended as a Greek lexicon, he criticized Francis publicly for not beginning the endeavor. The King finally responded in 1530 by establishing the Collège Royal, later known as the Collège de France.
Bude's position as royal librarian also enabled him to establish the royal library at Fontainebleau, which, when later moved to Paris, became the Bibliothèque Nationale. His later years were clouded with the unfounded accusation that he was inclined to Calvinism. He died in Paris, France on August 22, 1540.
(Ridotte dal Costume Antico, all'Uso Moderno. Italian Edit...)
2018(French Edition.)
2018(Latin Edition.)
2017(Latin Edition.)
2017He married Roberte Le Lieur when she was about 15 years old.