D'AUBIGNE* 



DAUDET 



693 



became professor of ChemUtry at Oxford in 1822, 

 .t Botany in 1S34, and wan an F.R.S. OtlierworkH 

 are nn introduction to the Atomic Theory (1831), 

 Lecture* on Agriculture (1841), ami I. "-I urea on 

 Cliiiutti- ( lst>'2). Daubeny died December 13, 1867. 

 l>'\ul>i<iir. .ii \N Hi M:I Mini. a popular 

 ecclesiastical historian, wan born at Eaux-Vives, 

 IHMI- Geneva in Switzerland, 16th August 1794, 

 Mii.lic.1 there and at Berlin under Neander and 

 in 181 S Ix-nuiie pastor of the French Protestant 

 Church in llaiiiliinu'. In 1823 he was appointed 

 court preacher at Brussels ; but after the revolu- 

 tion of is:), he declined the post of tutor to the 

 Prince of Orange, and returning to Geneva, took 

 part in the institution of the new evangelical 

 church, and tilled the chair of Church History in 

 its theological seminary until his sudden death, in 

 the night of October 20-1, 1872. With the excep- 

 tion of some visits to England and Scotland, where 

 he had Humorous readers and admirers, and where 

 he received the degree of D.C.L. from Oxford and 

 the freedom of the city of Edinburgh, he remained 

 constantly at Geneva. The work which has given 

 him a widespread reputation is his Histoire de la 

 Reformation aa Seizitinc Siecle (1835-53); it has 

 been translated into most European tongues, and 

 has attracted more notice abroad than at nome ; it 

 is written with a devout, fervid sympathy that is 

 often eloquent, although the narrative is too 

 graphic to be everywhere exact. Its popularity 

 has been immense. Among his other writings are 

 Germany, England, and Scotland (Lond. 1848); a 

 vindication of Cromwell (1848); 1'rois Siecles de 

 Lutte en cosse ( 1849 ) ; and Histoire de la Reforma- 

 tion en Europe au Temps de Calvin ( 1862-78 ). 



D'Aubign^, THEODORE AGRIPPA, a famous 

 French scholar, was born on 8th February 1550, 

 near Pons in Saintonge. At an early period he 

 exhibited a remarkable talent for the acquisition 

 of languages. Although born of a noble family, he 

 inherited no wealth from his father, and conse- 

 quently chose the military profession. In 1567 he 

 distinguished himself by his services to the Hugue- 

 not cause, and was subsequently .rewarded by 

 Henry IV., who made him vice-admiral of Guienne 

 and Brittany. His severe and inflexible character 

 frequently embroiled him with the court ; and after 

 Henry's assassination (1610), he betook himself to 

 Geneva, where he spent the remainder of his life 

 in literary studies. He died April 29, 16.30, leaving 

 a worthless son, Constant, who was father of 

 Madame de Maintenon. D'Aubigne's best-known 

 work is his Histoire Universelle, 1550-1601 (Amster- 

 dam, 1616-20), which had the honour of being 

 burned in France by the common hangman. 

 D'Aubign6 was possessed of a spirit of biting 

 satire, as is proved by his Confession Catholique 

 da Sicitr de Sancy, and his Avent tires du Baron 

 de Foeneste. See his Histoire Secrete, fxrite par 

 Ini inline (1731); also French studies by Reaume 

 ( 1883) and Morillot ( 1884). 



Daubigny* CHARLES FRANCOIS, landscape- 

 painter and etcher, born in Paris in 1817, studied 

 under his father, who was a miniature-painter, 

 Paul Delaroche, and others, and from 1838 ex- 

 hibited in the Salon, although his full recognition 

 came only after the artist had reached his fiftieth 

 year. He devoted himself to close and sympathetic 

 study from nature, working much on the Seine in a 

 house-boat, and developed a style of landscape art 

 marked by singularly unaffected fidelity and origin- 

 ality. In 1853 he gained a first-class medal with his 

 ' Pool of Gylien.' In 1857 he produced his ' Spring- 

 time ; ' in 1861, ' The Banks of the Oise ; ' in 1872, 

 4 Windmills at Dordrecht ; ' and in 1877, his large 

 and very impressive 'Rising Moon.' His 'Sluices 

 in the Valley of Optevos ' ( 1855) and liia ' Vintage ' 



(1863) are in the Luxemtioiirg Gallery. He u also 

 known as a hook-illustiutor and an a vigorous 

 etcher, having produced over a hundred plates, 

 SOUK- reproductions, others direct from nature, 

 marked by great frankness of method and free 

 painter-like quality. He died in Paris, 19th 

 February 1878. 



D'Aubllggon, PIERRE, Grand master of the 

 order of St John of Jerusalem, nurnamed ' the 

 Shield of the Church,' was born of a noble French 

 family in 1423. At an early age he entered the 

 service of the Emperor Sigismund, and served under 

 the Archduke Albrecht of Austria against the 

 Turks. Returning to France, he served with the 

 Armagnacs against the Swiss, and covered himself 

 with glory at their defeat near St Jacob (1444). 

 He next joined the order of the Knights of Rhodes, 

 and rose rapidly into power, becoming grand-master 

 in 1476. He laboured to bring about a confedera- 

 tion of all the Christian powers to counteract the 

 triumph of the Turks that followed the fall of 

 Constantinople. Mohammed II. 's career of con- 

 quest, which threatened to spread over Western 

 Europe, was stayed alone by the obstinate bravery 

 of D Aubusson and his little colony of Christian 

 soldiers in the island of Rhodes. In May 1480 an 

 army of 100,000 Turks invested the town, but were 

 forced to raise the siege after a month's desperate 

 fighting, leaving behind them as many as 9000 

 dead. Mohammed was filled with fury, and a 

 second attack was only averted by his death in 1481. 

 D' Aubusson died. in 1503. See HOSPITALLERS. 



Daildet, ALPHONSE, was born at Nimes on 

 May 13, 1840. His family had been in trade, but 

 were not in good circumstances. He was, however, 

 well educated at the Lyons Lycee, and was able 

 when quite a boy to take the place of usher in a 

 school at Alais, an employment of which, in Le 

 Petit Chose and others of his works, he has given no 

 cheerful reminiscences. He was only seventeen 

 when, giving up his ushership, he set out for Paris 

 with his elder brother, Ernest, who himself became 

 a journalist and novelist of some mark. Alphonse 

 (as also did Ernest) obtained an appointment aa 

 clerk or private secretary in the office of the Duke 

 de Morny, of whom he has drawn a famous portrait 

 in Le Nabab. Indeed, one of the main character- 

 istics of M. Daudet's method, and one of the main 

 reasons of his popularity with some, and his un- 

 popularity with other readers, is the manner in 

 which he seems to have utilised almost every cir- 

 cumstance and almost every acquaintanceship of 

 his life in his books. M. Daudet s literary efforts, 

 however, began with poetry ; and his first book : 

 in 1858, was entitled Les Amoureuses. He also 

 devoted some not too successful years of experi- 

 ment to theatrical work, writing by himself, or 

 with a collaborator, La Demiere Idole (1862), 

 L'OSillet Blanc (1865), Le Frere Atnf (1868), L 

 Sacrifice U869), Lise Tavernier, and L'Arltsienne 

 (1872), pieces of which the earlier were more suc- 

 cessful than the later. Besides this, he contributed 

 to many journals, especially the Figaro. In this 

 form appeared some of his best work, the Lcttres 

 de Man Moulin (collected 1869), Robert Helmotit 

 (1871), the Contea du Lundi, and others; and it 

 was in these years that he conceived the charm- 

 ing extravaganza of Tartarin de Tarascon, a 

 most amusing satire on the characteristics of 

 the natives of the south of France ( 1874), which he 

 followed ii]> with Tarturin atir lea Alpea (1886) and 

 Port Tarnaron (1890). 



It was not, however, till many years after his 

 literary beginnings that M. Daudet hit on the 

 style which has made him popular and famous. He 

 had sketched something of the kind carl; in Le 

 Petit Chose, a book full of pathos and of reminis- 



