223 
H O L 
and the fon received his education under him. Though 
he never vifited Italy, by the force of his genius alone 
lie freed himielf from the Gothic ftyle of his country ; 
and he painted equally well in oil, water-colours, and 
diftemper. He poffefled a wonderful fertility of invention, 
yet he had patience to give an exquifite finilh to his works; 
and fcarcely any mailer has equalled him in the truth and 
livelinefs of his flefil-colour. He early obtained reputa¬ 
tion at home, by feveral works in the town-houfe, and 
fome excellent portraits ; among which was that of the 
illuftrious Eral'mus, then refiding at Bafil. A dillipated 
mode of living, however, threw this diltinguilhed painter 
into indigence ; and he lived unealily with his wife, whofe 
temper was probably foured by his mifconducl. Under 
thel'e circumftances he attracted the notice of the earl of 
Arundel, then on his return from Italy, who invited him 
to vifit England. The advice of Eral'mus feconded this 
invitation ; and in 1526, furniflied with recommendatory 
letters to fir Thomas More, he quitted his family and na¬ 
tive place, and palfed by Antwerp to England. More re¬ 
ceived him kindly; and kept him nearly three years at his 
houfe at Chelfea, painting portraits of the lord chancellor 
and his friends. King Henry VIII. having feen fome of 
his family performances, took the painter into his own 
fervice, and gave him an apartment in the palace, with a 
competent falary. He was employed in a variety of works, 
chiefly portrait; and after the death of queen Jane Sey¬ 
mour, he was fent by the king into Flanders to draw the 
picture of the duchefs-dowager of Milan, who had been 
recommeneded to Henry for a wife. He had afterwards a 
like commifiion to lady Anne of Cleves ; and the beauty 
he gave her portrait induced Henry to fend for the origi¬ 
nal, with whom, however, he was fo much difgulted, that 
he rejected her from his bed. This difappointment is 
fuppofed to have cauled the fall of the miniiter, lord Crom¬ 
well ; but the painter, who was more to blame, retained 
his favour at court. A llory is told of Holbein’s throw¬ 
ing down flairs a nobleman who intruded upon him while 
he was painting a lady in fecret, and of his obtaining his 
pardon for the offence from the king, who oblerved, “ that 
of feven peafants he could make as many lords, but not 
one Holbein.” He continued to refide in England till his 
death, in 1554, at the age of fifty-fix. Of Holbein’s very 
numerous works, a full catalogue is given by Mr. Wal¬ 
pole. In the town-houfe of Bafil are eight pieces of 
Chrifl’s Paffion, which are much admired. The Dance of 
Death, though fhown as his in a church-yard at Bafil, 
was certainly painted before his time ; but he copied the 
idea with great improvements in a let of drawings en¬ 
graved by Hollar. His large pieces in England are, a 
picture in Surgeon’s-hall, of Henry VIII. granting the 
charter to the company ; and another in the hall of Bride- 
well-hofpitai, reprefenting Edward VI. prefenting to the 
lord-mayor of London his charter of donation of that ex¬ 
cellent charity. He painted two large pieces in diflemper, 
for the Eafterling merchants in London, the fubjefls of 
which were, the refpeftive triumphs of riches and poverty. 
The pictures have perifhed, but drawings of them are 
pseferved, which difplay great power of fancy and ex- 
preffion. His other works are mollly portraits, and are to 
b« found in a variety of collections, where they are highly 
valued. 
HOL'BERG (Louis), a celebrated writer, born at Ber¬ 
gen in Norway, in 1681. His father, a lieutenant-colo¬ 
nel in the army, and his mother, both dying before he had 
attained the tenth year of his age, he was patronifed by 
his mother’s brother, who fent him to Copenhagen, and 
direfted his fludies to the principles of theology. In this 
city he learned French and Italian, went through the 
different examinations of the clergy with credit, and went 
back to his own country, where he became private tutor 
in the family of the fuffragan of the bifhop of Bergen. 
Scarcely had he enjoyed this appointment a month, when 
he conceived a difguft at his employment ; which was Itiil 
farther llrengthened by an ardent defire of travelling. He 
H O L 
accordingly fold every thing he could convert into money, 
and, though all he could raifie amounted to no more than 
fixty dollars, he took a pafiage by fea to Holland. Hav¬ 
ing exhaufted his finances at Amflerdam, and in a refi- 
dence at Aix-la-Chapelle for his health, he was obliged 
to procure a livelihood by his lkill in mufic. After con-7 
fiderable difficulty, he directed his courfe to Chriftianfand, 
and on his arrival there commenced a teacher of languages. 
Here a clergyman, one of his relations, received him into 
his houfe, where he flaid the whole winter. In the fpring 
he embarked for England ; and after vifiting London, he 
proceeded to Oxford, where he found himfelf at firft em- 
barrafied ; but, making himfelf known to the lludents by 
his fkill in languages aitd in mufic, he got a great many 
of them as pupils. Having improved himfelf at Oxford 
as much as poffible, he took a pafiage in a Swedifh fhip to 
Helfingor, from which he travelled by land to Copenha¬ 
gen, where he was engaged to accompany the fon of a 
counfellor of Hate to Drefden, with recommendations to 
baron von Lowendahl, in whofe houfe he refided. From 
Drelden he returned by the way of Leipfic, Halle, Brunl- 
wick, and Hamburg; and, as he had acquired great celebrity 
by his travels, admiral Gedde offered him the place of 
tutor to his Ions. Poverty compelled him to embrace this 
offer; but at the end of a year, being admitted into the 
college of medicine, he religned his employment. He 
foon after recommenced his travels, and went by fea to- 
the Netherlands; whence proceeding on foot to Brulfels, he 
arrived much fatigued at the capital of France. At Paris 
he continued a year and a half; when, having heard that 
one could travel from Paris to Rome with twenty dol¬ 
lars, he refolved to pay a vifit to that city, and performed 
the greater part of the journey on foot. Having fpent 
the winter there, he fet out on his return to Paris, by the 
way of Florence, Bologna, Turin, and Lyons. On his 
return to Copenhagen, he had Hill to ftruggle with nar¬ 
row circumftances. In the mean time he publifhed, in 
the Danifh language, An Introduflion to the Law of Na¬ 
ture and Nations; and fhortly after, fortune began to fa¬ 
vour him with her fmiles. He obtained a public appoint¬ 
ment which railed him above poverty, being made pro- 
feffor of metaphyfics; which was followed by a place in 
the Confiftory, which gave him a higher rank, and made 
a farther addition to his income. 
Hitherto Holberg had applied chiefly to jurifprudence, 
hiftory, and languages ; but he now refolved to try his 
talents in poetry. He began with latirical compofition, 
and his firft attempt was the well-known heroi-comio 
poem called Peter Paars; which is Hill read with fatisfac- 
tion by the Swedes and Danes. His reputation as a writer 
being now eftablifhed, he gave to the public a great many 
other productions, all of which met with a favourable re¬ 
ception, and were tranflated into different foreign lan¬ 
guages. In 1735, he became reflor of the univerfity of 
Copenhagen ; and on the death of Bartholin, in 1737, he 
was entrulled with the management of its finances. Hav* 
ing now acquired lome property by his literary labours, 
he purchafed an eftate in Iceland, and, on taking polfef- 
fion of it, turned his thoughts towards improving it. As 
he had a handfome income, lived economical!)', and was 
never married, he amafled a confiderable fortune, feventy 
thoufand dollars of which he bellowed on the Academy 
of Soroe in Iceland, for the purpofe of educating young 
nobility; on which account the king, in 1747, declared 
him a baron ; and the academy afterwards celebrated his 
memory by an annual oration. He aifo fettled fixteen 
thoufand dollars, the interell of which was to be employ¬ 
ed in providing eftabliihments for young women at Co¬ 
penhagen. He died in 1754, in the feventy-firlt year of 
his age. His writings are very numerous, and have been 
much fought after and approved. He was tiie author of 
Kiimm’s Subterranean Travels; which were tranflated. 
into feven different languages. It is a romance >r aliegory 
on the plan of Gulliver’s Travels, but find to have more 
genuine wit and naive. ' He wrote, many dramatic pieces 
which 
