Jacques Bongars facts for kids
Jacques Bongars (1554–1612) was a French scholar and diplomat. A diplomat is someone who represents their country in dealings with other countries. He was known for his important work in history and for serving the French king.
Life of Jacques Bongars
Jacques Bongars was born in Orléans, France. He grew up following the Protestant faith. He studied in different places like Marburg and Jena in Germany, and then in Orléans and Bourges in France.
After his studies, he traveled to Rome and then to eastern Europe. He later met Ségur Pardaillan, who worked for Henry, the future King Henry IV of France. Bongars joined Pardaillan's service.
In 1587, Bongars was sent on important trips to leaders in northern Europe. He also visited England to ask Queen Elizabeth for help for Henry of Navarre. He continued to work for Henry as a diplomat.
In 1593, he became the French king's representative to important European rulers. He strongly supported King Henry's efforts to reduce the power of the powerful Habsburg family. He worked very hard and spent his own money to help King Henry. He continued his work until the king sadly died in 1610. After that, Bongars returned to France and passed away in Paris.
Writings and Collections
Jacques Bongars was also a dedicated scholar. He wrote a shorter version of a history book by Justin, which was already a shorter version of Trogus Pompeius's history. This book was called Justinus, Trogi Pompeii Historiarum Philippicarum epitoma de manuscriptis codicibus emendatior et prologis auctior (published in Paris, 1581).
He also collected writings from French authors who lived during the Crusades and wrote about them. He published these under the title Gesta Dei per Francos (Hanover, 1611). Another collection he made was Rerum Hungaricarum scriptores varii (Frankfort, 1600), which included various writings about Hungarian history.
His letters, called Epistolae, were published in Leiden in 1647. A French translation of his letters was published in Paris between 1668 and 1670. Many of his important papers are kept in the Burgerbibliothek in Bern, Switzerland. Other papers and copies of his instructions are in libraries in Paris and the British Museum.
