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ABSTRACT
The dimension of privacy in the context of early modernity has become an important element of study of daily life at the time. The Livre Synodal contains information regarding the affairs of the French Reformed religious community in the United Provinces. The Livre Synodal is a source not for religious affairs but for matters relating to privacy and the life of the community. Based on two case studies, that of De La Rouille in Middelburg and Huguenin in Leiden and Wesel, the author assesses the perspectives of privacy existing in these, and analyses them through the prism of the so-called heuristic zones of privacy.
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Notes
1 Yardeni, Le Refuge Protestant.
2 Israel, The Dutch Republic, 169–178.
3 See the recent work on this topic by Lenarduzzi, Katholiek in de Republiek.
4 Bolhius, “La Hollande et les deux refuges”; Green, The Huguenot Jean Rou.
5 Posthumus-Meyjes and Bost, Livre des Actes, from here onwards abbreviated as LS.
6 Yardeni, Le refuge protestant.
7 Warren and Brandeis, “The Right to Privacy”.
8 Margulis, “Privacy as a Social Issue”, 243–261.
9 For the initial heuristic zones, see Birkedal Bruun, “Towards an Approach”, 12–60.
10 For an explanation of privacy as an umbrella term, see: Hughes, “A Behavioural Understanding of Privacy and its Implications for Privacy Law”, and Bruun “Towards an Approach”.
11 See for example the article by Hugues, “A Behavioural Understanding of Privacy”.
12 Green and Huysman. “The Low Countries, Privacy and Private Life”.
13 See Green, The Huguenot Jean Rou, chapters 1–2 and 5 for the discussion of the life of Huguenots in the United Provinces in the 1670s and early 1680s prior to the Revocation.
14 LS, 807–808.
15 LS, 808.
16 LS, 811–817. Audebert de La Rouille was a prominent family in Poitou, but it is not clear how the subject of this case is related to them. Jacques Audebert de La Rouille is mentioned in the 3rd volume of Bulletin de la commission de l’histoire des Églises Wallonnes, as coming from Chartres, proposant from 1672 (intended minister), chaplain of the Duchy of Saxony, called upon in October 1679 and beginning his position as pastor in Dalhem on 10 January 1680, retiring thirteen years later. See: Bulletin des Églises Wallonnes, vol. 3, 221. He is listed as a tutor of French of the Walloon Church of Bremen in 1673 in Bulletin des Églises Wallonnes, vol. 5, 25. Several years after the events described here, Confession de foy in1686 (printed a year later) states that Jacques Audebert de La Rouille had his confirmation of faith at the Church of Dalhem, by Mr. Gilles Warnier, pastor in Maastricht, on 10 January 1680 (3 years after the aforementioned affair), see: Confession de foy, 44. This means that he would have been allowed to be minister, and began his job, on that day. This means that between his jobs in Germany and Southern Netherlands, he had a position in Middelburg. See also: Munier, Het simultaneum in de Landen, 234, 264.
17 LS, 811–817. All translations are mine, unless otherwise noted. “C’est avec un sensible regret que ie me voy oblige à répandre mon cœur en vostre sein par les plaintes egalement iustes et ameres contre le consistoire de Middelbourg, chacun peut sçavoir aisement avec quelle assiduité i’ay travaillé à l’edification de cest’eglise l’espace de deux ans et de quelques mois, elle l’a declaré assez elle mesme et par ses deputez à divers synodes et par le tesmoignage qu’elle m’en donna, escrit et signé de ses pasteurs et de ses autres principaux membres peu de temps avant le decez de Monsieur Prevost”.
18 “ … que premierement ils me payassent le salaire dont nous estions convenus en pleine assemblee, et rendus à leur priere, […] ils m’en donnassent une recompense proportionnée à mes depenses et à mes fatigues, mais bien loin d’avoir accompli l’un et l’autre ie n’en reçeu depuis 7 ou 8 mois que des marques de dureté et d’ingratitude. Il y aura bientost un an qu’ils me sont redevables de 88 francs … ”.
19 Henri du Moulin was nominated pastor of Middelburg in 1664. It is important here to point out that Henri du Moulin was related to the prominent du Moulin family; his brother was Louis du Moulin, a famous theologian, and up until 1669 he himself was preaching in Middelburg, at the same time that Jean de Labadie was working there. See: Bolhius, “La Hollande et les deux refuges”, 413; Pal, Republic of Women, 240; Gerlach, “Jean de Labadie à Middelbourg”, 1–28; Saxby, The Quest for the New Jerusalem, 135–172 (referred to in: Milton, Epistolarum, 359). See for a view of Middelburg around the time of the events.
20 LS 813. “130 exposition defecteusese, celle que Mr. [Pierre] de Joncour[t] avoit faitte deux ou trois jours auparavant du vers 3 du pseaume 130”.
21 Joncourt was a prolific writer, publishing among others: Lettre de plainte; Entretiens sur les différentes méthodes.
22 LS, 826.
23 According to the Catholic “Dictionnaire Universelle François et Latin”, vol. 4, 1137, “Proposant, se dit aussi de ceux qu’on éxaminw poue être reçus Ministres dans la Religion prétenduë Réformée. Lorsqu’ils soutiennent des Thêses de leur croyanace, ils font la même chose que ceux qui soutiennent des Thêses pour être reçus Docteurs chez les Catholiques. Quand on leur écrit, on met sur les lettres: A Monsieur tel Proposant en Théologie” (Proposant [Proposer[, is also said of those who are examined to be admitted as Ministers in the so-called Reformed Religion. When they defend theses of their belief, they do the same thing as those who defend theses to be received Doctors among Catholics. When one writes to them, one puts on the letters: To Monsieur this or that Proposant in Theology). Nowadays, he would have the title of a PhD student.
24 “[…] il y a des charges sur Monsr. Huguenin, proposant en Theologie, desquelles passant par nostre ville il a refusé de se defendre, quoy qu’il en eut suffisamment le temps, en souffrant d’estre confronté avec une personne qui l’accuse de très grandes scandales qui sont esclattée en cette ville et qui sont venus à la cognoissance de nostre eglise, desquels, s’il est coupable, il ne pourroit estre en edification à l’esglise de Dieu pour la benediction de vostre esglise … ”.
25 Van der Aa, “Huguenin (David)”, in Biographisch Woordenboek der Nederlanden, part 8, vol. 2, 1420–1421. Huguenin was the author of several works, including Dissertatio de Dei; Christianus ratiocinans; Grammatica hebraica rationalis.
26 LS, 802.
27 LS, 817.
28 Livre Synodal contenant les articles, 763. Fig.2 illustrates the climate in Leiden at the time of these events.
29 “le verbal des accusations qui on esté intentées contre luy et des responses qu’il a dictées de sa bouche et signées de sa main”.
30 Livre Synodal contenant les articles résolus, 778.
31 LS, 826.
32 LS, 826–829.
33 He was called to his job in Leiden from Wesel on 5 February 1670, and died on 9 May 1700. See: Orde, volgens welke de feest- en lijdensteksten, 140; Bulletin de la Commission, 62.
34 Livre Synodal contenant les articles résolus, 8, article 17.
35 LS, 827–828. The eight points below presented as a free (and at times shortened or paraphrased) translation of the original French text.
36 LS, 827–828. “il luy mis la main sous les iuppes, qu’elle s’en est fuye dans la cuisine où il la suivit, mais que ne s’y trouvant pas assurée qu’elle courut à la cave où il la suivit, mais quelle luy dit qu’il retint ses mains, et que s’il ne s’arrestoit point, il faisoit une affaire diabolique et qu’elle s’en plaindroit à son maitre”.
37 Theodore Biel’s wife’s name was Alida Snellen, and they signed their married contract on 8 May 1674. The other signatures on the document were those of Laurens van Sonnegem and Emmerentia Berck, the widow of Christaen Snellen (and probably the bride’s mother), and Glaudij de Jongh. Regional Archives Dordrecht, access number 20 Notariële archieven van Dordrecht, inv. num. 323, “Huwelijkse Voorwaarden”, ff. 209–210. See below. The name Biel is spelt as “Bijl”. Unfortunately, it was not possible to identify his date of birth.
38 De Pinto depicts the places they stayed on their way to Rotterdam from Antwerp as cold and sickly, a feeling that what was lacking for these places to be called home were warmth and security. For an analysis of this egodocument, see: Green, “Privacy in Jewish Egodocuments”. See also: Green, “Spaces of Privacy”, 60.
39 Van der Heijeden, “Women as Victims”, 623–644; Mansell, “Beyond the Home”, 24–49.
40 LS, 829–830.
41 “Nous vous disons, Messieurs et très honorés frères, que les témoignages extérieurs d’une profonde repentance qu’il [Huguenin] nous a donnés ayant demandé pardon à deux genoux à Mr. Biel, nostre cher collegue, et à nous, et nous ayant coniurez par les compassions de Dieu de vouloir demander dans nos prières particulières pour luy l’esprit regenerant et sanctifiant, nous declarons que nous sommes satisfaits pour le regard des faits qu’il a avouez et confirmez par les témoignages susdits de sa repentance”.
42 LS, 830–831.
43 LS, 831–832.
44 LS, 864–865.
45 “Dec. 11. Johannes Hinsen Vesalia-Clivensis. 20, J.”, as stated in Album studiosorum, 401.
46 LS, 864. “doctrine et la pureté de ses predications, que par la chasteté, la sobrieté, la charité”.
47 According to Francesco Trevisani, Huguenin had been made professor of Theology in 1689. See Trevisani, Descartes in Deutschland, 183, n. 20. It does seem highly improbable, especially since Trevisani gives the dates of his life as 1675–1705 in the same note, meaning he would have been just four years old when the affair we discuss here occurred, and aged just fourteen when he became professor.
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Michaël Green
Dr hab. Michaël Green is university professor at the Faculty of Philosophy and History at the University of Lodz in Poland. He received his PhD from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands (2013) and habilitation from the University of Lodz (2023). His major publications include: The Huguenot Jean Rou (1638–1711): Scholar, Educator, Civil Servant (2015); Le Grand Tour 1701-1703. Lettres de Paul Rapin-Thoyras et Henry Bentinck, vicomte Woodstock, à Hans Willem Bentinck (2021) and An Interreligious Dialogue: Portrayal of Jews in Dutch French-Language Periodicals (1680–1715)(2022). He is the editor of M. Yardeni, Minorités et mentalités religieuses en Europe moderne (XVIe-XVIIIe siècle): L’exemple des huguenots (2018), and co-editor together with Lars Cyril Nørgaard and Mette Birkedal Bruun of Early Modern Privacy: Sources and Approaches (2022) and with Ineke Huysman of Private Life and Privacy in the Early Modern Low Countries (2023).