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De Gulden Passer. Jaargang 80 (2002)

De Gulden Passer. Jaargang 80

(2002)– [tijdschrift] Gulden Passer, De–rechtenstatus Auteursrechtelijk beschermd

Vorige Volgende

Benito Arias Montano and the friends from his Antwerp sojourn*
Jeanine de Landtsheer

From May 1568 until May 1575 Benito Arias Montano stayed in Antwerp at the explicit wish of his sovereign.1 King Philip II had appointed the theologian as supervisor of what was to become Christopher Plantin's masterpiece par excellence, the edition of the Biblia polyglota or Biblia regia, a project on which the Antwerp printer had already been working for several years before Montanus's arrival in Antwerp.2 Although Plantin was at first rather suspicious about having a Spanish theologian invested with an Inquisitorial mission looking over his shoulder, the initially awkward contacts soon grew into deference culminating in trust and sincere friendship. The ‘guest from abroad’ was cordially introduced to the numerous scholars who visited Plantin's press at the Vrijdagmarkt and he became a member of a wide-ranging circle of humanist friends. The collaboration on the Biblia polyglota proved to be more successful than anyone had dared to expect - Montano set himself the task of checking proof sheets and writing a number of treatises on biblical philology, geography and history, which were to form the last volume of the Polyglota, the Apparatus. Moreover, his new surroundings had a stimulating effect and resulted in a number of publications once the Polyglota was completed and sent to Rome for papal approval. In 1572 a collection of religious poems, Humanae salutis monumenta came from Plantin's press, followed by a metrical, Latin translation of the Psalms, Davidis Regis ac Prophetae aliorumque sacrorum vatum Psalmi in 1573 and three pious books, illustrations in verses of engravings from Philip Galle,

published in 1573 and 1575.3 Meanwhile Montano in close collaboration with leading theologians from Leuven edited an amended text of the Vulgate.

In the second half of 1574 Montano was called back to his native country, but instead of returning immediately to Spain, he set out for Rome at the beginning of May 1575 in an attempt to reconcile the conservative Cardinals with the Biblia regia, unfortunately to no avail. Montano was so disappointed by the vehement opposition against his Biblia regia that he begged the royal secretary Gabriel de Zayas to persuade the king to entrust him with another mission in Flanders. Finally he returned to Spain in 1576 to assume his task as curator of the Royal Library at the Escorial, where he was responsible for classifying and expurgating recent acquisitions. The first testimony of Montano's arrival in Spain occurs in a letter from the abovementioned Gabriel de Zayas to Philip ii, dated 25 July.4 Montano's letters reveal his dissatisfaction with this position and his longing to be relieved from all court duties. In February 1578 he was sent to Lisbon, but after his return in April 1579 he was allowed to retire at least partly to the seclusion of Peña de Aracena, where he had acquired a small estate. Far from the intrigues and animosities at the royal court and far from theological disputes, he enjoyed a life of tranquillity surrounded by books, engravings and a garden embellished with plants sent by his friends.5 Nonetheless, in the summer of 1582 he had to leave his haven of peace to oblige cardinal Quiroga and participate at the provincial Council of Toledo (8 Spetember 1582-12 March 1583), from whence he proceeded to the Escorial and resumed his task at the royal library, until he received the permission to return to Peña de Aracena in 1586. The last decade of his life was for the

most part devoted to writing and occasional visits to his humanist friends in Sevilla. In spite of the distance between author and printer, Montano would always entrust the publication of his manuscripts to the Officina Plantiniana.

That Benito Arias Montano had become close friends with a limited number of humanists from Plantin's circle and that he intended to maintain this relationship is evident from the correspondence written during his sojourn in Rome. Time and again either Plantin or Montano expressed their unhappiness and their longing for the almost daily meetings from the theologian's Antwerp days. One of the first letters Plantin addressed to Montano in Rome opens with the following lines:

Ex quo hic discessisti, Vir Ill[ustr]is, corpore quidem utcumque valui, animo vero semper fui de te solicitus, timens ne tibi quid accideret incommodi, maxime vero ne famuli novi novas tibi praeter itineris communes molestias afferrent.
Since you left here, honorable Sir, although I am in good bodily health, I have always been worrying about you, for fear that some inconveniences might befall you, and especially that the new servants might give you troubles other than those to be expected on a journey.

And he continues:

[...] ex [amicis dolentibus], eos omnes quos in tuis ad me literis nominaveras invitavi ad hortulum ubi, sumpto prandiolo, easdem exhibui litteras quarum exemplar, postquam saepius - rogantibus illis - fuissent iterato non sine lacrymis perlectae, unusquisque sibi postulavit. Ad hoc autem praestandum Iohannem nostrum sibi postulaverunt notarium, quod libenter pollicitus est et praestitit.
[...] from our unhappy friends I invited all those whom you had mentioned by name in your letter to my garden. We had a light meal and afterwards I showed them your letter, of which each wanted to have his own copy after at their insistance it had repeatedly been read to them not without tears. They asked our dear Johannes [Moretus] to copy it for them, which he willingly promised and did.6

After Montano's departure from Antwerp the good relations with Plantin and his circle remained. A number of the acquaintances from the Antwerp period continued to inform their Spanish friend about their lives and their projects. Time and again they appealed to him to promote either

their private interests or the common weal at the royal court, or they begged him to use his experience and his influence to make the king aware of the wretched conditions in the Netherlands and point out possible or necessary remedies. In this article I intend to examine those contacts between Benito Arias Montano and the members of Plantin's circle after his return to his native country. It will become clear that for each correspondent specific aspects can be discerned. The fact that a number of correspondences of the late-sixteenth century is now readily available or almost available has proved a great help in collecting the material for my purpose. Between 1883 and 1918 Max Rooses and Jean Denucé set an example by editing the correspondence of Christopher Plantin;7 between 1950 and 1954 Marie Delcourt and Jean Hoyoux took care of a major part of the letters of Laevinus Torrentius, bishop of Antwerp from 1587 on.8 In 1978 the first part of the correspondence of Justus Lipsius came from the press thanks to the collaboration of Aloïs Gerlo, Mon Nauwelaers and Hendrik Vervliet,9 and finally three years ago Antonio Dávila Pérez edited the correspondence of Montano as preserved in the Antwerp Museum Plantin-Moretus.10

The correspondence with Christopher Plantin is by far the largest. Except for the period when Plantin stayed in Leiden, from March 1583 until his return in Antwerp in October 1585, the theologian and the printer carried on a lively correspondence. After Montano's return to Spain the exchange of letters, presents, manuscripts and books was made easier by their mutual friend, the Spanish merchant Luis Pérez, who had established himself in Antwerp but regularly travelled between the Southern Netherlands and Spain, and also by Theodore Pulman, Plantin's agent in Spain and one of the main publishers and booksellers in Salamanca. In the letters both private and public matters are discussed often at length and, of course, they make it possible to follow the progress of Montano's publica-

tions and especially of the Biblia regia.11 Yet I will not dwell any further on this, because it really deserves a more extensive study of its own. Instead, I will focus on members of Plantin's circle, viz. Abraham Ortelius, Justus Lipsius, Laevinus Torrentius and Plantin's son-in-law and Antwerp successor, Johannes Moretus.

Montano and Abraham Ortelius
(Antwerp, 1527 - Antwerp, 1598)

Ortelius's correspondence, which for its major part has been edited by Hessels, contains seven letters from Montano to the Antwerp cartographer.12 Yet it is obvious that quite a number of others never reached their destination.

Before we begin our investigation into these letters attention should be drawn to a few other marks of mutual esteem. Already in 1573 Montano had advised king Philip ii to honour Ortelius with the title of geographus regius (royal geographer). The first written testimony of their friendship dates from the next year, when Montano made an entry in Ortelius's Liber amicorum, viz. a poem in four elegiac distichs on f. 16v embellished with a drawing, presumably from Montano's hand, of an idealized, young Archimedes and the subtitle ‘Eureka’ in Greek capitals with the dedication on f. 17r.13 Moreover, in Ortelius's estate an autograph of Montano was found consisting of the dedication of the Ortelius's Theatrum orbis terrae to

King Philip ii. This was probably meant to replace the one in the editio princeps (1570), from the Latin edition of 1574 onwards, although it was never used.14 Furthermore, both friends courteously referred to their mutual esteem and affection in their works. In 1586 Ortelius dedicated his Hispaniae veteris descriptio, a description of Spain in Roman times, which Montano had worked out for him, to his learned Spanish friend.15 A few years later Montano on his turn had his commentary to Psalms viii and xxiii dedicated to Ortelius.16

The correspondence between Montano and Ortelius is by far the most personal of the four considered in this article and proves clearly that the two humanists were close friends. Still in Rome, the Spaniard wrote to his friend in Antwerp:

Literae tuae quamvis tardius mihi redditae, tamen gratissimae contingerunt utpote eius viri manu conscriptae quem ego inter charissima nostri Belgii pignora habeo cuiusque memoria mihi perpetuo in pectore infixa haeret et nomen frequentissime in bonorum doctorumque virorum celebritate et colloquio me referente auditur, quae una solaque res consolationem aliquam mihi affert in hoc gravissimo vestri omnium quos istic amo desiderio, quod me perpetuo excruciat. Vix credi potest, mi Orteli, quam arctis charitatis vinculis tibi tuique similibus devinctus sum, quibus eo gravius premor quo longius a vobis absum.
Your letter, in spite of its late arrival, was most welcome to me, since it was written by the man I reckon among my dearest friends in the Netherlands. His memory is forever rooted in my heart and his name can be heard continuously when I refer to him during meetings and conversations with worthy and learned men, the only thing to give me some comfort in my painful longing for all of you who are dear to me there in Antwerp, a longing which constantly torments me. One can hardly believe, my dear Ortelius, how close the bonds of love are, which unite me with you and others like you. The greater the distance between us, the stronger my affection.17

He further expressed his wish to be released from duties at court and to retire into private life, so that he might possibly return to the Netherlands, but he urged Ortelius to mention this wish only to a limited number of Antwerp friends, and definitely not to any Spaniard.

The correspondence also indicates that the Spanish theologian must have been a frequent guest at the home of Ortelius, who lived around the corner from Plantin, in the Kammenstraat, Montano characterizes his own study as ‘nostrum Naturae et artis theatrum, Musaei tui divitiis et elegantiis longe inferiore’ (Our cabinet of natural history and art, far inferior to the richess and elegance of yours)18. Besides the usual greetings to the humanist friends in Antwerp, the letters also include regards for Ortelius's mother and sister.19 Moreover, Montano refers to a painting of the Dormition seen in Ortelius's house and even asks for a copy, which was indeed made in copper by another Antwerp friend, engraver Philip Galle.20 The letters seem to have been accompanied by presents: silver grains from America, a small silver box with two rings, one of them a golden ring with an emerald meant for Ortelius's sister, pieces of bezoar stone,21 sometimes encased in gold, which Ortelius was recommended to wear as an amulet against melancholy, or a remedy from the West Indies supposed to be a cure against wounds inside the mouth. Ortelius for his part sent a portrait medal engraved in silver, engravings with allegorical or literary subjects, and portraits of the Antwerp friends including the late Plantin, all of them made by the aforementioned Philip Galle. He also took care of the mail which scholars living in the German Empire asked him to forward to Spain.22 Thus, for instance, the botanist Carolus Clusius, who also had his works published by the Officina Plantiniana, urged Montano via Ortelius to purchase any new books on herbs and therapeutic plants growing in the Eastern and Western Indies and shared the interest of Montano and the circle of his Sevilla friends in botany.

Montano felt extremely grateful for Ortelius's letters for ‘Writing always dispells the feeling of loneliness which comes over me through my absence from you and other like-minded friends. Meanwhile you enliven me with your gifts and the tokens of your generosity and friendship.’23 Of course, both friends offered each other copies of their works as well and Montano was always on the outlook for material which might be useful for Ortelius's maps. For instance, before coming to Spain he asked mathematician and globe-maker Johannes Baptista Raimundus in Rome to provide him with a copy of the beautiful map of China he owned, and back in Spain he suggested emendations to the commentary of Ortelius's map of the kingdom of Valencia. He congratulated his friend on the increasing number of new maps in his work and even went as far as to warn him to avoid unnecessary references to the Inquisition: ‘Consulo praeterea ac moneo ut quantum fieri possit ab inquisitionis mentione perpetuo supersedeas, nisi quod fortassis in illius iudicii commendationem res ac tempus attulerit!’24

Montano and Justus Lipsius
(Overijse, 1547 - Leuven, 1606)

The correspondence with Justus Lipsius is very interesting because it is a testimony of Montano's open-mindedness concerning religion. Moreover, the theologian shows a sincere concern for Lipsius's well-being.

Although the first preserved letter stricto sensu between both scholars dates only from September 1592, they knew one another much earlier and probably met at the occasion of a visit of Lipsius at Plantin's. Lipsius also showed his esteem for Montano in those early years by including him among the addressees of his Epistolicae quaestiones, a collection of fictitious letters each containing critical annotations to ancient Greek or Latin authors, particularly to Livy, and edited by Plantin in 1577.25 In it Lipsius stressed that his correspondent had attained the summit of scholarship by becoming one of the leading theologians and an expert in foreign, i.e. ancient, languages such as Hebrew, Syriac, Chaldaean, and even Arabic. His

knowledge of those languages was both passive and active, as was proved by the pious and elegant Carmina sacra. This was followed by a few emendations to Livy xxiv.

Early in 1578 Lipsius accepted an invitation of his friend Janus Dousa and moved from the war-ridden Southern Netherlands to the anti-Spanish and Calvinist Leiden University. Of course, keeping up a correspondence between his new place of residence and Spain was quite impossible for an immigrant from the Spanish provinces! Nonetheless Montano never reproached Lipsius for his ‘change of climate’; he questioned neither his orthodoxy nor his loyalty towards the King, but defended him against attacks. The best illustration of this attitude is expressed in a letter to Christopher Plantin, written shortly after the latter's return to Antwerp.

[Lypsianarum epistolarum] fasciculus mihi gratissimus, ut Lypsii scripta omnia et Lypsius ipse, cuius et virtutem et pietatem ego numquam in dubium vocari passus sum ubicumque fuerim. Sed scis qualia hominum iudicia sint, hominum dico qui nulli alii integram laudem tribui vellent quam sibi ipsis, qua tamen vel hoc ipso invidiae vitio sunt indignissimi. Vix quicquam de cuiuspiam viri eruditione vel ingenio vel industria praedicari occipitur, quin sit aliquis qui vel neget illum illo loco recte de religione sentire, vel - cum modestissime agere videatur - hoc modo non dubitet: ‘Fierine potest ut ille catholicus sit qui illic vivat?’ Quod tamen ita redarguere soleo silentioque involvere: ‘Tu ergo si, qua sorte vel ratione illuc migrare cogeris, catholicus non viveres, religionem quam primum abiurares, quam nunc, quia hoc loco es, colere te putas firmissime, quasi vero religio locum sequatur et non animo infixa haereat?’
The packet of Lipsius's letters was most welcome to me, as all of his writings are, as well as Lipsius himself, for wherever I was, I have never allowed any doubt ever to be cast upon either his virtue or his piety. But you know the judgement of men, men I mean, who do not want to sing the praise of anyone, except their own, a praise of which they are totally unworthy because of this sin of envy. One can hardly start commenting on anyone's [i.e. Lipsius's] erudition or talents or diligence, but that someone points out that in that matter he is wrong from the point of view of religion, or - though he seems to be acting very reasonably - will not hesitate to say: ‘Could it be possible that anyone living over there could be a Catholic?’ To such faultfinders I always retort and I silence them as follows: ‘Thus if by some fate or for some reason you are forced to move to those parts, you wouldn't live there as a Catholic, you would immediately renounce the faith which you are claiming to profess absolutely now, just because you are living here, as if faith comes with the neighbourhood and is not deeply rooted in one's heart?

Once Montano was acquainted with Lipsius's decision to leave the Calvinist University of Leiden and return to the Catholic South, namely, to the University of Leuven, he anticipated only too well the difficult times full

of unremitting suspicion which lay before him. He expressed his concern in a fictitious letter,26 the dedication of his commentary on Psalm VII, because its second verse, ‘Salvum me fac ex omnibus persequentibus me et libera me’ reminded him of the situation awaiting Lipsius in the South. That people who merit everyone's praise should have to renounce it and even encounter envy, he wrote, is a sore as old as humanity. Lipsius shouldn't let himself be deterred by such mean, pusillanimous criticism. The Lord would be the ultimate judge of his deeds. At the same time Montano sent him a letter - not preserved - together with a present, congratulating him on his return to Leuven and even inviting him to Spain, which was highly appreciated by Lipsius, who wrote in his answer:

[...] invitas me in Hispaniam et tuam urbem, imo domum, nec ut hospitem aut amicum, sed (eo verbo utendum est) quasi filium et - quis mihi credet? - te vivo rerum tuarum consortium, mortuo successionem ex asse offers!
You even invite me to Spain and to your city, yes, even to your house, not as a guest or a friend but (there is no other word for it!) as if I were your son, and - who would believe me? - to share your life as long as you live and to become your successor after you passed away.27

Lipsius was pleased, not so much by the small present and the invitation, but by the implicit encouraging value judgement given by one of the leading Spanish theologians in spite of his thirteen years stay in anti-Spanish Leiden.

More than a year later Montano reached for his quill again and sent Lipsius a second letter and present via Plantin's dear friend, the Antwerp merchant, Luis Pérez. Lipsius was addressed as ‘viro cum primis pio ac pietatis constantia mille modis explorato ac probato’ (a singularly pious man, the constancy of whose faith has been confirmed and appoved in a thousand ways). Referring to what he wrote to Plantin several years before, he pointed out once more that he had never tolerated any backbiting on Lipsius's account as long as he was in Leiden, nor had he ever had any doubts about his orthodoxy. And he asserted that Lipsius was held in high esteem in Seville's humanist circle.28 Together with his answer, Lipsius sent

Montano a copy of his De cruce, a treatise with both a pious theme and purpose, but which nonetheless was not considered to be a work of theology. ‘I will stay within the boundaries of my profession - i.e. literature, and this is the only title I use - for I agree with “Let the cobbler stick to his last”, as they say!’29 He informed Montano that he was still devoting his time to historiography and ashed his advice about dedicating one of his treatises to the Crown Prince, a matter in which he still missed Plantin's sound advice.30 In his answer Montano apologized for not writing more regularly; he praised the Leuven humanist for his De cruce, wished him good luck with his new house and garden, and encouraged him to edit either a collection of references to plants in ancient authors or, as was suggested by a number of his learned acquaintances, a history of drama. He further agreed that it would be a good idea to offer one of his works to the future King Philip iii.31

In the last letter of their correspondence32 Montano expressed his alarm and disappointment upon hearing about the disgraceful way Lipsius was treated in Leuven, although both members of the University Board and prominent politicians had assured him that Lipsius would be well provided for. Since the situation seemed to be quite the opposite - Lipsius was still earning only a mere pittance compared to his wages in Leiden and often complained about the irregularity of his payment - Montano had immediately sent a copy of part of Lipsius's complaint to García Figueroa, chamberlain to King Philip II. He urged urging him to defend Lipsius's cause with Juan de Idiáquez, one of the King's influential secretaries, by pointing out that, in spite of a number of honorable and alluring invitations from

abroad, the famous humanist had preferred to settle in his country, as a loyal subject of the king.

Montano and Laevinus Torrentius (Ghent, 1525 - Brussels, 1595)33

The correspondence with Laevinus Torrentius presents a different aspect again. There is, of course, a personal touch in these letters, but in the course of the years - especially after Torrentius's enthronement as bishop of Antwerp, when he had exchanged the relative security of the principality of Liège, protected by the Emperor, for the insecurity and poor economic conditions of the Southérn Netherlands - Torrentius would call upon Montano as the influential counsellor who had the ear of king Philip ii:

Occurrent enim saepe multa quae te scire nobis proderit, ne occasio transeat qua apud Regem opt[imum] max[imum] hoc nostrum Belgium summa nunc commiseratione dignum iuvare possis, praesertim ecclesiasticis in rebus, quibus recte semel constitutis, cetera quoque melius succedent.
For there will often occur many events which it will be profitable to us for you to know. In this way you will not allow any opportunity to pass to succour our dear country of Belgium deserving of the deepest commiseration with the best and greatest of Kings, particularly in ecclesiastical matters, for once they are settled, the rest will proceed more smoothly too.34

Although Torrentius was living in Liège as a secretary to the Liège prince-bishop Gerard van Groesbeeck during the years Montano was involved in the supervision of the Biblia regia, they undoubtedly met at Plantin's, who was the publisher of Torrentius's works, and probably also at political meetings in Brussels. On one occasion they even travelled to Rome together. Thanks to manuscript 15704 in the Brussels Royal Library35 the drafts of twenty letters from Torrentius to Montano, written between 1584 and 1595, have been preserved.36 Yet the correspondence must have been

more extensive, for in a letter of 29 August 1588,37 Torrentius complained that for many years their letters had been intercepted out of envy or spite.

That Montano and Torrentius were on friendly terms becomes clear from the very first preserved letter on:

Quoties recordor veteris nostrae consuetudinis, mi Aria Montane, - recordor autem saepissime - varie admodum afficior. Nam et eo me nunc carere molestum est ex cuius olim praesentia utilitatem ac voluptatem coepi maximam, et rursus cum quae post discessum tuum inciderint tempora mecum reputo, et tuo et meo pariter nomine gaudeo, tuo quod abes nec quae patimur mala vel auditu gravia sentis ac vides, meo quod te amicum paratum habeo quo incolumi his ipsis in malis me consolari possim.
Whenever I remember our friendship of former days, my dear Montano, - and I remember it quite often -, I am afflicted with mixed feelings. On the one hand it is hard for me to miss a friend whose presence was both of the greatest use and pleasure for me, and on the other hand, when I recall the times we had to cope with after your departure, I feel glad in your name and mine, in yours because you are absent and do not know or see the troubles we have to endure - just hearing about them is terrible. I feel glad in my name, because I have a friend at hand who affords me consolation by his being free of harm in these dreadful misfortunes.38

Furthermore, the affection of Montano encouraged Torrentius to be more cheerful and even-minded. The testimonies of friendship continued in almost every letter; Torrentius acknowledged the arrival of small presents from his Spain, among them pieces of bezoar stone, which occurred in the correspondence with Ortelius too. They exchanged copies of each other's works - for instance poems on the death of William of Orange or on the siege of Antwerp39 - and sometimes plants as well. Torrentius occasionally complained that he was so overwhelmed with all kinds of practical matters, that he was more or less forced to abandon his interests in literature40, a complaint also frequently occurring in letters from Montano.

Furthermore, Torrentius did his best to keep his friend in Spain informed about his Antwerp friends, sometimes in a very personal way. When the situation in Antwerp had deteriorated under Calvinist rule, he ensured Montano that many of their acquaintances had sought refuge in Cologne for religious reasons. This was the case with, among others,

[...] Franciscum Crucium [...] cum uxore, matrona sanctissima, et liberis tribus, quos inter Leonora, deliciae quondam tuae ob praeclaram indolem quam in puella ab ipsis ferme cunabulis elucere conspexisti; summa spe futurae eius prudentiae ac probitatis, qua adulta nunc aetate confirmata, matrem cuius virtutes admirari soles, sic referre incipit ut in filia renatam esse diceres.
Franciscus Crucius with his wife, a women of unique piety, and their three children, one of them Leonora, who was your favourite because of her bright mind, which you noticed in the girl from her infancy. The high expectations of her future wisdom and integrity have been confirmed now that she is an adult and she has grown into such a mirror image of her mother, whose virtues you used to admire, that you would say that she was reborn in her daughter.41

He also reassured the Spanish theologian that none of his friends had renounced the true faith, ‘even though some of them might live in anti-Spanish territory’, obviously an allusion to Justus Lipsius and Christopher Plantin, who were then living in Leiden.42 In later letters too, Torrentius would stand up for Plantin and require Montano's support at the royal court, particularly so in a letter dated 13 June 1587, when rumours of new calomnies in Spain were spread. New opponents - presumably merchants or people belonging to the financial world - seemed to be putting Plantin's orthodoxy in a bad light with the king, although in Antwerp, the bishop affirmed, he was working to everybody's satisfaction, even of the Jesuits. Plantin was not seeking profit, his finances were in such poor shape that he had not enough money left to publish something himself, but had to place his presses in the service of others to survive. Hence, Montano should use his influence with the king to defend Plantin against backbiters, and recommend for financial support.43

Once Torrentius was enthroned as second bishop of Antwerp and got acquainted with the distressful political and economical situation, he would more and more call upon Montano's advice, support and authority in matters of the common weal, viz., the administration of his diocese and the increasingly poor state of the Southern Netherlands. In January 1592, for

instance, when Montano had been summoned to court again, Torrentius wrote:

[...] te a Rege accersitum iam in aula esse, quod plurimum sane gaudeo, neque enim sine infelicis huius provinciae bono. Cui quoniam tu una mecum impense faves, da quaeso operam et omnes contende nervos ut hoc bonum quam citissime et quam fieri poterit uberrime sentiamus.
[...] that you have been summoned by the King and are already at the court, to my great pleasure and without doubt to the advantage of this unhappy province. And because you share my feelings for it, I beg you to do your utmost and spare no energy, so that we might become aware of this advantage as soon as possible and in the most productive way.44

It is easy to understand why Torrentius put so much trust in Montano, for he had been the one to recommend him to king Philip II as the appropriate candidate for the See of Antwerp. Moreover, because of his seven years' stay in the Spanish Netherlands, not in the splendid isolation of a palace with fellow-countrymen, but in close contact with well-educated, open-minded and conscientious citizens, who were sincerely concerned about the fate of their country, he had gradually realized that a great deal of the critisism against Spain was justified.45 The suspicious reception in Rome and in Spain of the Bible on which he had devoted so many years and the confrontation with the misery he beheld with his own eyes upon his return from Rome in December 1572, added as well to make him more sympathetic towards the increasing Dutch protest against the campaign of terror and taxations of the ‘Iron Duke’, as Alba was nicknamed in the Netherlands.

Torrentius was not eager to become a bishop, but he gave in to the explicit wishes of his friends. Furthermore, it would have been far more advantageous to accept the see of Ghent, his native town, but he accepted king Philip's decision, as he explained to Montano.46 Meanwhile, although they still had to tolerate heretics according to the terms of peace made by

Farnese, the religious situation in Antwerp had definitely improved to the time when Montano was living there, thanks to the lenient conditions proposed by the king. After three years as bishop he sent Montano an extensive report of the situation in Antwerp: he had urged governor Alexander Farnese not to yield to the Calvinists and grant them another term in town. A number of craftsmen did indeed emigrate, but the majority of the well-to-do citizens were likely to reconcile themselves with the Church of Rome, convinced either by the bishop or by skilled preachers, if only they were treated with clemency and understanding.

[...] totum me tradens ac quantum potui allaborans ut, si qua fieri in tot tantisque difficultatibus posset, misere prostrata atque afflicta tot annis ecclesia una cum monasterio Sancti-Bernardi, olim florentissimo atque pulcherrimo, nunc diruto atque exusto (unde sua episcopo dos) nonnihil restauraretur. [...] Hoc scito: ad religionem quod attinet, a nostri saeculi memoria Antverpiam non fuisse integriorem, uti et ex quotidiana conversatione et ornatu templorum et sacra synaxi ac poentitentia rite confitentium peccata cuivis facile apparet.
[...] entirely devoting myself and taking all possible pains to make some partial restoration to this church - if it is possible in one way or the other amidst the immense troubles -, for it has been miserably prostrated and afflicted for so many years, together with the monastery of St Bernard [in Hemiksem], once so thriving and illustrious, but now devastated and burned down, and which should provide the income for the bishopric. This you should know: as far as religion is concerned, Antwerp has never shown more integrity, for as long as we can remember, as it is only too clear to everyone from every-day life, the ornaments in the churches, the holy Mass and the ritual confessions.47

In the course of 1592 he made increasingly urgent pleas to ameliorate the conditions of both diocese and monastery: Saint Bernard's should be separated from the See; the king should grant the latter its own resources and pay the promised annuity of two thousand florins, which would finance the bishop's administration and a seminary for priests, and also partly support the needs of the Jesuits. The monastery would be greately helped if it were permitted to sell its altar plates and ornaments, part of which were brought to Spain. Torrentius even referred to a precious golden cross, a true masterpiece, which at the time of his letter hung in the tribunal of the Inquisition in Seville without ever having been paid for.48 Torrentius

was frustrated in his hopes, for according to a letter written at the end of his life king Philip would finally allow the treasury of Hemiksem's monastery to be sold, but did not agree to separate the monastery and the bishopric and grant the latter its own resources.49

In his reports on the restoration of Catholicism in Antwerp, the bishop kept stressing the importance of peace within the Netherlands: if peace within the Netherlands was restored, everything would soon be thriving again. During his first years as a bishop he still pleaded that the king should adopt an attitude of clemency, especially towards the rebellious provinces, to win them over again even with less favourable conditions. If the situation would calm down a bit, a small group of people, priests and Jesuits, could be sent up North and effect a wave of conversion. Peace with the rebellious provinces would also strongly influence the policy against France and England as well, because the Netherlands held a key position in such wars. ‘Nunc vero bellandi assiduitate eo deventum est, ut si longior adhuc fiat mora non de religioni, sed de imperio tantum futura sit quaestio’ (But because of the continous waging of war it has reached such a point that, if one demurs even more, not only religion but the realm will be put at risk).50 Time and again the Antwerp bishop underlined that the Netherlands should be united again, before venturing on a war with France or England, a viewpoint he shared with governor Farnese. In later letters Torrentius warned that the situation had reached rock bottom and that the Northern provinces were winning ground and capturing one fortress and strategic town after the other. Maurits of Nassau's successes were largely due to the smooth and strict organisation of his army, whereas discipline was totally missing among the Spanish troops. For Torrentius was continually complaining about the behaviour of the army, ‘ut non levius noster nobis miles quam hostis ipse damnum adferat, nec tam bellum quam latrocinium habeamus’ (so that the damage done by our soldiers is not less than that done by the enemy, and that what we are witnessing is not war but full-scale brigandage, rather than war) or a few months later:

Victor miles non minus nobis quam hostis ipse gravis ac perniciosus est. Nec multum sane refert a quo spoliemur, nisi quod pati ab amico multo durius est. Interim Regis opes quamvis incredibiles paulatim exhauriuntur.
The victorous soldier is as heavy a burden and as wicked for us as the enemy. It really does not matter much by whom we are despoiled, but it is harsher when you have to endure this from a friend. Meanwhile it is hard to believe how the King's resources are gradually exhausted.51

In the course of the years Torrentius's attitude towards the looting soldiers became more lenient: their behaviour was wrong, but understandable because they suffered poor and irregular pay; the blame was to be put on the rapaciousness of the money-lenders or on the financial agents who acted as intermediaries and lined their pockets with the soldiers' wages (avaritia foeneratorum vel ministrorum rapacitate). In later letters, Torrentius's frustration against the king's way of acting became more openly accusatory. It is also striking how subtly the bishop defended the attitude and the policy of governor Alexander Farnese, who was more and more brought into discredit with the Spanish king, especially after the disaster of the Armada launched against England in August 1588.52 Whenever Torrentius complained about the lack of discipline in the Spanish army, he always hastened to add a compliment or an extenuation on Farnese's account. The bishop's last letters were becoming increasingly pessimistic. He was frustrated and disappointed about the lack of response from the government in Spain and perhaps also from his friend at the court. However, Torrentius largely over-estimated the political influence of Montano on king Philip II during those later years.

Montano and Johannes Moretus (Antwerp, 1543 - Antwerp, 1610)

The last correspondence I want to dwell upon is that with Johannes Moretus. Just as was the case with Lipsius, Plantin preferred to carry on his correspondence with Montano by himself, hence there are only very few letters from Moretus to Montano before his father-in-law became mortally ill.

From the period of Plantin's sojourn in Leiden (early 1583-fall 1585) only one letter, a very practical one, is preserved. On 28 March 1585 Montano asked Moretus - then responsible for the printing press, together with his brother-in-law, Franciscus Raphelengius - to purchase a number of Greek books urgently needed by Petrus Valentiae; he was eagerly expecting the arrival of the promised engravings from the Antwerp friends, particularly those of Plantin made by Philip Galle. He also suggested that Moretus should use the services of Bernardus de Mendoza, the Spanish ambassador in Paris, for whatever he wanted to send to Spain. The letter ended with a personal touch, viz., congratulations on the birth of his eighth child, Elisabeth (Isabel) and the request to be informed about the whereabouts of Magdalena, Plantin's daughter, who had married the printer Gilles (Egide) Beys.53 Once Plantin had settled down again in Antwerp, he took matters over and resumed the correspondence wih his Spanish friend.

The first proper letters between Moretus and Montano date from the middle of 1589, just before and after Plantin's death. On 15 June Moretus informed Montano briefly that Plantin was bedridden, suffering excruciating pains and violent onslaughts of fever, before turning to business matters: the painter and engraver Peeter ander Borcht would make a design for curtains, Franciscus Raphelengius would write him about the forthcoming edition of his Poemata, which was delayed because of Plantin's illness, and Arnoldus Mylius in Cologne was asked to find some epigrams of Venantius Fortunatus to Martin of Tours and a letter from Pope Hadrian I to Egilain (or Egilam) of Toledo concerning fast on the Sabbath in Spain.54

In his next letter, of 8 July, Moretus cautiously announced the news of Plantin's death, referring for further details to their mutual friend Luis Pérez. At the same time he underlined his affection for Montano as a patronus and asked him a favour: he might persuade King Philip II to square his accounts, so that the creditors of the Officina could be paid and the business kept afloat. From an annuity promised in May 1573, Plantin had only received the amount corresponding to a year and a half!55 Montano's answer on 17 August is lost, but Moretus's reaction on 4 October 1589 makes it clear that the Spanish theologian was deeply distressed. Moretus wanted to

comfort both his correspondent and himself: the fact that many parts of the sentences are crossed off, interchanged or rewritten is an obvious testimony of how hard it was for him to bring up the subject of the death of his father-in-law, whom he characterized as ‘patrem optimum reipublicaeque Christianae consultorem vigilantem maximum’ (a marvellous father and scrupulously vigilant in his concern for the Christian faith), the latter of course constituting a posthumous refutation of the attacks during Plantin's life. In his eulogy he further stressed that everyone could testify how exemplary his death was (‘quam optime defunctus fuerit omnes qui noverunt testari potuerunt’), how utterly and unbelievingly patient he had endured his illness (‘[morbum] quem maxima et incredibili patientia tulit’), how in his last hours he still prompted his children and his in-laws to mutual love and fraternal affection, advice that was in perfect agreement with the example set by him during his life (‘hanc extremam suam voluntatem tam placide eloquentem audierimus, commendando videlicet nobis mutuum amorem dilectionemque fraternam, commendatio vere digna tale patre qui, cum viverat, eandem semper ob oculos proposuerat’).56 In this, as well as in his next letter, Moretus showed his concern for his correspondent's sorrow: he should take care of his health and, both for Plantin's sake and that of his friends, not allow his grief to overwhelm him:

Clar[issi]me vir, si unquam tibi Plantinus inter amicos fuit, si quid etiam apud te amicorum preces possunt, vale; ut in<columem> te tibi, imo amicis conserves rogamus omnes qui R[everentiae] T[uae] noti et ex animo bene tibi cupiant ac voluere semper inter eos.57

He almost blamed himself, together with the other Antwerp friends, so he wrote, of having informed Montano!

At the end of the year Moretus was less anxious about the Spaniard's bodily and mental health, although he was still mourning. After expounding upon his sorrow he reassured the Spanish priest of the well-being of Plantin's whole family. Then he reverts to business: they are finishing the publications put to press during the last months. If Montano would send his commentary on Iudices they would do their utmost to have it printed; as long as they managed to keep the presses working they would never refuse any of his writings. They had asked Theodore Pulman to send

Montano a catalogue of their publications and provide him with all the books requested.

The first preserved letter from Montano to Moretus after Plantin's death is full of topoi common to a letter of comfort: undoubtedly Plantin, his brother, is happy now, yet Montano keeps missing him. He is not able to find comfort, not even in Moretus's letters. Well aware that the Officina was going through hard times, he promised his support for as long as he lived. If only his financial resources matched his affection, so that they had never to turn to the King or a private person again! In spite of his limited funds, he asked Pérez to grant him fifty florins. Next he changed to the topic of correspondence and books: scholars in Seville and Salamanca were looking forward to the Monumenta humanae salutis. The commentary on Iudices had been finished for a year now; a carefully transcribed copy was awaiting a safe messenger. In this case too he promised to contribute to the expenses of printing; a few copies to distribute among his dearest friend would do for him. As usual the letter ended with greetings to the whole family, including the Raphelengii and Justus Lipsius in Leiden, and to some Antwerp acquaintances.

With the years the correspondence became less frequent, partly because it hardly ever touched upon other themes than the progress of Montano's publications and orders, or dispatching of books. To use Antonio Dávila Pérez's words (p. 705): ‘El estilo de las cartas del impresor heredero de Plantino es mucho más conciso que el de su suegro; la informacíon que ofrece más práctica.’ Family life was hardly ever discussed, because Luis Pérez had taken it upon himself to keep his old friend acquainted with how the Antwerp friends were doing. So for instance Moretus only casually mentioned the death of his mother-in-law, Jeanne Rivière, referring for further details to Pérez.58 An exception should be made for a letter dated 18 December 1590, in which Moretus answered a question of Montano about his own family and that of Plantin's other daughters. The letter is extremely interesting because of the information on Moretus's three surviving sons, particularly Balthasar, who would fulfill his father's expectations and become his right hand man and successor at the Officina Plantiniana. In the last letter of the correspondence Montano learned the news that the oldest living son, Melchior had decided to become a priest and that the oldest daughter, Catharina, might be engaged with Theodore, a son of Philip Galle.59

Nonetheless the correspondence offers a good testimony that the Spanish theologian remained faithful to the press which had taken such good care of his major achievement, the Biblia regia. Despite the distance he kept sending Moretus his manuscripts and discussed the presentation of his books. He also informed him when one of his commentaries or treatises was selling particularly well in Spain, so that Moretus could consider another delivery or a reissue. Regularly he offered a sum of money, always via Luis Pérez, to meet the expenses of the publication of his works. He also encouraged his Seville friends to order books via the Officina Plantiniana.

To conclude

This survey of the correspondence between Benito Arias Montano and Plantin's humanists friends proves clearly that the theologian from Extremadura still played an important part in their lives in various ways, even after his return to Spain. He remained the dear friend with whom they exchanged presents and shared their interests, the humanist who encouraged them in their projects and with whom they exchanged works, the theologian who kept defending the orthodoxy of Plantin and Lipsius in spite of their stay in Calvinist territory. Furthermore, they required his support as a royal counsellor, to make King Philip ii aware of the true situation in the Netherlands afflicted by poverty and continuous war, even though they might have overestimated his influence with the King during the last years of his life. Finally, Montano was also important for the survuval of the Officina Plantiniana by his frequent financial support, and especially by his recommendation of its publications in Spanish humanist circles.

Yet this survey also indicates a few needs. Most important is to make the whole correspondence of Benito Arias Montano readily accessible in a critical and annotated edition, a project guaranteed by the ‘Grupo de investigación Élio Antonio de Nebrija’. Secondly, someone - by preference the editor of the correspondence preserved at the Museum Plantin-Moretus in Antwerp - should publish a thorough outline of the main themes in the correspondence between Benito Arias Montano and Christopher Plantin, which will without doubt offer a contribution to the history of the book as well as to the history of ideas in the Netherlands of the final third of the sixteenth century. Finally it might be considered to rewrite part of Ben Rekers's Ph.D. thesis, particularly the fourth chapter on the Familia pietatis.

It seems to me that he was only too ready to accept that not only Plantin, but the whole circle of humanist friends including Montano were members of this sect, partly because of his too narrow interpretation of the Latin familia as ‘belonging to the Family of Love’ instead of its classical meaning ‘a group of people living under the same roof or closely connected60. Regarding this subject attention should be drawn to an enlightening article of Paul Valkema Blouw entitled ‘Was Plantin a member of the Family of Love?’, incorporating the examination of hitherto unstudied sources.61 I incline to believe that Rekers created a kind of snowball effect causing an exaggeration of the influence of the Familia pietatis, so that it was believed to include a number of well-educated and pious men, who longed for a religion freed of the strict limitations of either Catholics or Protestants, and much closer to its origins: the Bible and the early Fathers, a group of men who had also become utterly irenist after more than twenty years of constant war, misery and poverty, because only peace would allow them to travel freely, a liberty they needed either as merchants for the exchange of goods or as scholars for the exchange of ideas.

 

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

Seminarium Philologiae Humanisticae

Blijde-Inkomststr. 21, B-3000 Leuven

jeanine.delandtsheer@arts.kuleuven.ac.be

Samenvatting

Van mei 1568 tot mei 1575 verbleef Benito Arias Montano (1527-1598) - humanist, theoloog en raadsman van Filips ii - in Antwerpen. De Spaanse koning had hem daarheen gestuurd om toezicht te houden op de publicatie van de Polyglotbijbel. Hij werd met de nodige achterdocht ontvangen: een Spanjaard uit de omgeving van de koning, die als een soort inquisiteur Plantijn op de vingers kwam kijken! Heel snel echter veranderde die argwaan via oprechte waardering voor de deskundigheid en de toewijding van Montano in een oprechte vriendschap. Hij werd een graag geziene gast in Plantijns huiselijke kring en werd opgenomen in de veelzijdige humanisten-vriendengroep rond de Antwerpse drukker. Ook na zijn terugkeer naar Spanje bleven de contacten bewaard. In deze bijdrage wordt aan de hand van de bewaarde correspondentie de relatie onderzocht tussen Montano en vier Zuid-Nederlanders: Abraham Ortelius, Justus Lipsius, Laevinus Torrentius en Johannes Moretus. Montano bleef een goede vriend, met wie boeken en andere cadeautjes werden uitgewisseld en aan wie onderzoeksplannen werden voorgelegd; hij bezorgde het Plantijnse Huis financiële steun en maakte in Spanje reclame voor hun publicaties; hij nam het voor zijn vrienden op wanneer twijfels rezen omtrent hun rechtgelovigheid; ten slotte deed men een beroep op hem als hofdignitaris om koning Filips ii bewust te maken van de benarde situatie in de Zuidelijke Nederlanden, die uitgeput waren door de economische situatie en de voortdurende oorlogen.


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