Albertanus of Brescia
Albertanus of Brescia (Italian: Albertano da Brescia, c. 1195 – c. 1251) was an author of Latin social treatises and sermons.
Biography
Albertanus was from Brescia, in northern Italy, but little is known of his early life. He had three sons, Vincent, Stephen, and John (who was a surgeon). He was a notary and causidici (professional legal counselor).
He first appears in the historical record in 1226 as a judge renewing the Lombard League. In 1238 he was named captain to defend the town of Gavardo against the forces of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor. Defeated, he was imprisoned for a few months at Cremona, where he found the time to start a writing career.
His first work was De amore et dilectione Dei et proximi et aliarum rerum et de forma vitae ("On love and delight in God and in neighbor and other matters concerning the rule of life"; 1238), a treatise on Christian conceptions of life under religious rule which quotes frequently from
Albertanus' best known work is his
His last work is from 1250 and is a series of four sermons presented to his fellow causidici at Brescia, in which he explained the meaning of their rule.
In total he was the author of three major treatises and five ‘sermons’, public addresses to his fellow causidici at their professional meetings.
A central goal from the start for Albertanus was to present a rule of life that would lay the foundation for a good society. He believed in the importance of moral restraint based on voluntary participation in a community.
Influences
Albertanus read and was influenced by Seneca the Younger, Cicero, St. Augustine, the Wisdom literature of the Old Testament, and some 12th century authors.
Albertanus was very influential; his works were known and used by:
There were many translations of his works into French, German, Tuscan, Venetian, Spanish, Catalan, and Dutch, with a wide circulation well into the 15th and early 16th centuries, a testament to his broader influence on society. The Tuscan version was made by
Bibliography
- James M. Powell (1992). Albertanus of Brescia: The pursuit of happiness in the early thirteenth century, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press (ISBN 0-8122-3138-4)
- James M. Powell (2004). "Albertano Da Brescia" in Dictionary of the Middle Ages, Supplement 1.
- Angus Graham. "Albertanus of Brescia: A Preliminary Census of Vernacular Manuscripts." Studi Medieval 41 (2000): 891-924
See also
- Andrea of Grosseto
- Brescia
- Geoffrey Chaucer
- Italian literature
External links
- Albertano of Brescia: Resource Site, by Angus Graham. Includes full works in Latin and/or English.