of thofe who envied him, and that he had been attacked with great violence:" to whom Reincfius replied, "that he alfo was perfecuted by certain jealous wrong"headed people; that there was little true friendfhip in the "world, and little juftice and order among the learned'; "and that, to avoid the ftorm, he had concealed himfelf "the greatest part of his life. Having been frequently "invited to accept of academical profefforfhips," adds he, "I refused them. I believed, that it would not be pof"fible for me to bear with the ill-humours of certain "perfons, with whom I fhould have been obliged to "affociate; and I chofe rather to live here at Altemburgh, though I had not a very eafy life."

We find by his printed letters, that he was confulted as an oracle; that he anfwered very learnedly, whatever queftions were brought to him; that he was extremely filled in the families of ancient Rome, and in the ftudy of in. fcriptions. A very fine elogium is given of his merit, as well as of his learned and political works, by Grævius, in the dedication of the fecond edition of Cafaubon's epiftles, dated Amfterdam, Auguft 31, 1655. He partook of the liberality, which Lewis XIV fhewed to the moft celebrated scholars of Europe, an dreceived with the prefent a very obliging letter from Colbert; which favour he returned, by dedicating to him his "Obfervations on "the fragment of Petronius," in 1666. The religion of Reinefius was fufpected to be of the philofophical kind.

&c. tom. 1.

obitum Re

RELAND (HADRIAN), an eminent orientalift and very learned man, was born at Ryp, a village in NorthHolland, July 17, 1676. His father was minifter of that Niceron, village, but afterwards removed to Alkmaar, and then to 1. SerreAmfterdam. In this laft city Reland was educated with rier, Oratio infinite care; and at eleven years of age, having paffed Funebris in through the ufual courfes at fchool, was placed in the col- landi. Tra lege under Surenhufius. During three years of ftudy un-ject. 1715, der this profeffor, he made a vaft progrefs in the Hebrew, 410. Syriac, Chaldee, and Arabic languages; and at his leifure hours applied himfelf to poetry, in which he fucceeded very well. At fourteen, he was fent to Utrecht; where he ftudied under Grævius and Leufden, perfected himself in the Latin and Oriental tongues, and applied himfelf alfo to philofophy, in which he took the degree of doctor. At feventeen, he entered upon divinity under the direction of Herman Witfius and others; but did not abandon

the

the Oriental languages, which were always his favourite study. After he had refided fix years at Utrecht, his father fent him to Leyden, to continue his theological studies under Frederic Spanheim and others; where he foon received the offer of a profefforship at Linden, either in philofophy or the Oriental languages. He would have accepted it, though but just two and twenty; but his father's ill ftate of health would not allow him to remove fo far from Amfterdam. In 1699, he was elected profeffor of philofophy at Harderwick, but did not continue there long; for, king William having recommended him to the magiftrates of Utrecht, he was offered in 1701 the profefforihip of oriental languages and ecclefiaftical antiquities, which he readily accepted. In 1703, he took a wife, by whom he had three children. In 1713, a fociety for the advancement of Chriftian knowledge was eftablished in England, as was that for the propagation of the gofpel in foreign parts the year after: of both which Reland became a member. He died of the small-pox at Utrecht, Feb. 5, 1718, in his 42d year. He was a man of an excellent difpofition, and of great humanity and modefty. He had a correfpondence with the most eminent fcholars of his time.

He wrote and publifhed a great number of works, in order to promote and illuftrate facred and oriental learning; the chief of which are thefe. "De Religione Mo"hammedica libri duo, 1705," 12mo. The first book contains a short account of the faith of the Mahometans, in an Arabic manufcript with a Latin tranflation; the fecond vindicates them from doctrines and imputations falfely charged upon them. A fecond edition with great additions was printed in 1717, 12mo. "Differtationum "Mifcellanearum Partes Tres, 1706, 1707, 1708," in 3 vols. 12mo. There are thirteen differtations upon the following curious fubjects: "De fitu Paradifi Terreftris ;" "De Mari Rubro;"" De Monte Garizim;"" De Ophir;" "De Diis Cabiris ;"" De Veteri Lingua In"dica;" "De Samaritanis," "De Reliquiis veteris lingua Perficæ,"De Perficis vocabulis Talmudis;" "De jure Militari Mohammedanorum contra Chriftianos "bellum gerentium;" "De linguis Infularum quarun"dam orientalium;""De linguis Americanis ;' "Gemmis Arabicis." His next work was, "Antiqui"tates Sacræ Veterum Hebræorum, 1708," 12mo; but the best edition is that of 1717, 12mo, there being many

"De

additions.

additions. Then he published, "Differtationes Quinque. de Nummis veterum Hebræorum, qui ab infcriptarum "literarum forma Samaritani appellantur. Accedit dif"fertatio de marmoribus Arabicis Puteolanis. 1709," 12mo. But his greatest work was, Paleftina ex monu"mentis veteribus illuftrata, & cliartis Geographicis ac"curatioribus adornata. Traject. 1714, 2 vols. 4to. This edition is fuperior in all refpects to that of Nurem berg, 1716, 4to. "De Spoliis Templis Hierofolymitani "in arcu Titiano Roma confpicuis liber, cum figuris, "1716, 12mo...

Reland published many finaller things of his own, among which were Latin poems and orations; and was allo concerned as an editor of books written by others His works are all in Latin, and neatly printed.

REMBRANDT VAN REIN, a Flemish painter of great eminence, was the fon of a miller, and born near Leyden in 1606. He is one of thofe who owed all the Ikill in his profeffion to the ftrength of his own genius; for the advantages of education were few or none to him. His turn lay powerfully towards painting, infomuch that he feems to have been incapable of learning any thing elfe; and it is faid, that he could fcarcely read. We must not therefore expect to find correctnefs of defign, or a gufto of the antique, in the works of this painter. He had old pieces of armour, old inftruments, old head-dreffes, and abundance of old ftuff of various forts, hanging up in his work-fhop, which he faid were his antiques. His fole aim was to imitate living nature, fuch as it appeared to him; and the living nature, which he had continually before his eyes, being of the heavy kind, it is no wonder, that he should imbibe, as he did, the bad taste of his country. Nevertheless, he formed a manner entirely new and peculiar to himself; and drew abundance of portraits with wonderful ftrength, fweetnefs, and refemblance. Even in his etching, which was dark, and as particular as liis ftyle in painting, every individual ftroke did its part, and expreffed the very flesh, as well as the fpirit, of the perfons it reprefented. The union and harmony in all his compofitions are fuch, as are rarely to be found in other mafters. He understood the Claro Obfcuro in the highest degree his local colours are a help to each other, and appear beft by comparifon; and his carnations are as true, as frefh, and as. perfect, as Titian's.

VOL. XI.

F

There

There was as great a fingularity in the behaviour of this painter, as in his tafte and manner of painting: and he was an humourist of the first order, though a man of fenfe and a fine genius. He affected an old-fashioned flovenly drefs, and loved mean and pitiful company, though he had got fubftance enough to keep the best. Graham's Some of his friends telling him of it, he anfwered, "When fhort ac- "I have a mind to unbend and refresh my mind, I feek "not honour fo much as liberty:" and this humour he fubjoined to indulged, till, as it ufually happens, he reduced his forFrefnoy's art of paint- tunes to a level with the pooreft of his companions. He ing, p. 372. died in 1668; "for nothing more to be admired," fays Lond. 1716.a certain writer, "than for his having heaped up a noble "treafure of Italian prints and drawings, and making no "better ufe of them."

count of

painters,

RENAUDOT (EUSEBIUS), a French writer, very learned in Oriental hiftory and languages, was born at Paris in 1646; and, being taught claffical literature by the Jefuits, and philofophy in the college of Harcourt, afterwards entered into the congregation of the oratory, where he did not continue long. His father being first phyfician to the dauphin, he was early introduced to scenes, where his parts, his learning, and his politeness, made him admired. His reputation was afterwards advanced and eftablished by feveral learned works, which he published. In 1700, he attended cardinal de Noailles to Rome; and received great honours, together with the priory of Froffay in Bretany, from pope Clement V. Returning by Florence, he was honoured in the fame manner by the great duke; and was alfo made a member of the academy de la Crufca. On his return to France, he devoted himfelf entirely to letters, and compofed a great number of learned differtations, which are printed in the "Memoirs of "the Academy of Infcriptions;" of which he was a member, as well as of the French academy. He died in 1720, with high fentiments of devotion. Voltaire fays, that "he may be reproached with having prevented Bayle's Louis XIV... Dictionary from being printed in France."

Siécle de

tom. II.

He was the grandson of Theophraftus Renaudot, a phyfician, and a man learned in many refpects; and who difftinguished himfelf by being the firft author of Gazettes in France in 1631, and by fome literary productions. Theophraftus was born at Loudun in 1583, and died at Paris, where he had spent the greateft part of his life, in 1653.

RETZ

RETZ (CARDINAL DE). See GONDI.

Vita, a

REUCHLIN (JOHN), a learned German, who contributed much to the reftoration of letters in Europe, was born at Pforzheim in 1450. His parents, perceiving in Reuchlini him good parts and a turn to books, were eafily perfuaded Maio.Franto give him a liberal education; at a time when learning cof. 1687. and the fciences, by being fo rarely met with, were fo 8vo. much efteemed and honoured. He went to Paris, then the feat of literature in thefe western parts, with the bishop of Utrecht; where he ftudied grammar under Joannes à Lapide, rhetoric under Gaguinus, Greek under Tiphernas, and Hebrew under Weffelus. Being returned to his own country, he took the degree of doctor in philofophy at Bafil, where he lived four years; then went to Orleans to study the law, and was admitted doctor in 1479. He taught the Greek language at Orleans, as he had done at Bafil; and compofed and printed a grammar, a lexicon, fome vocabularies, and other works of a like nature, to facilitate the ftudy of that language. He gained prodigious reputation by this; for the knowledge of the two languages was at that time fo rare an accomplishment, that it was actually made a title of honour. This appears from the following infcription of a letter: "Andro

nicus Contoblacas, natione Græcus, utriufque linguæ peritus, Joanni Reuchlino," &c. that is, "Andronicus "Contoblacas, a Greek, fkilled in both languages, to "John Reuchlin," &c.

After fome time, Eberhard count of Wirtemberg being to make the tour of Italy, Reuchlin was pitched upon among others to attend him; chiefly becaufe, during his refidence in France, he had corrected his own German pronunciation of the Latin, which appeared fo rude and favage to the Italians. They were handfoniely received. at Florence by Laurence de Medicis, the father of Leo X: and became acquainted with many learned men there, as Chalcondylas, Ficinus, Politian, Picus earl of Mirandula, &c. They proceeded to Rome, where Hermolaus Barbarus prevailed with Reuchlin to change his name to Capnio, which fignifies the fame in Greek, as Reuchlin does in German; that is, Smoak. Count Eberhard entertained fo great an efteem for Capnio, fo he was afterwards called, that, upon his return to Germany, he made him his ambaffador to the emperor Frederic III.; at whofe court he came to be fo much confidered, that the