siastical career, as in 1701 he was appointed canon of the holy chapel at Paris. In 1711 he was received into the academy of belles lettres; in 1719, into the French academy; and 1732, he was named to the abbey of Notredame de Beaugency. He died Aug. 10, 1744. He is distinguished by two excellent French translations, of Quintilian, 4to, or 4 vols. 8vo, and Pausanias, 2 vols. 4to. There were also published in 1745, "Euvres diverses," or a collection of little essays by him upon subjects of morality and literature, edited by the abbè Olivet, with a life of the author, by Bachaumont. Gedoyn was besides author of many ingenious dissertations in the memoirs of the French academy.'

GEER (CHARLES DE), a Swedish naturalist, and called the Reaumur of that nation, was born in 1720, and after being educated in classical learning at Utrecht, studied under Linnæus at Upsal. Having an interest in the mines of Dannemora, he greatly improved the working of them by machinery of his own invention; and the improvements which he at the same time introduced in the cultivation of his estates procured him a very large fortune, which he expended in acts of munificence, such as endowing schools, repairing churches, and making provision for the poor. His opulence and reputation raised him to the honours of chamberlain, marshal of the court, knight of the order of Vasa, &c. a member of the academy of Stockholm, and a corresponding member of that of Paris. He died in March 1778. His studies in natural history produced his "Memoires pour servir à l'histoire des Insectes," 7 vols. generally bound in 9, 4to, illustrated with valuable and accurate engravings. The first volume of this work is extremely rare, for which a singular reason has been assigned. The author, it is said, was so hurt at the indifferent reception the public gave to it, as to commit to the flames the unsold copies, which made by far the greater part of the impression. Nor, when he recovered from this caprice, and pursued his undertaking, did he forget the fate of his first attempt, as he announced that the last volume would be given gratis to the purchasers of the first.2

GEIER (MARTIN), an eminent Lutheran divine, doctor of divinity, professor of Hebrew, minister of St. Thomas,

'Moreri,-Dict. Hist.

* Dict. Hist.

preacher, confessor, and member of the elector of Saxony's ecclesiastical councils, was born April 24, 1614, at Leipsic, and died August 22, 1681. He left valuable commentaries in Latin on Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, Daniel, and the Psalms; a treatise on the "Mourning of the Jews,' in the same language; and several other works which are esteemed, and were published at Amsterdam, 1695, 3 vols. fol.'

GEILER (JOHN), or, as by some called, GAYLER KEISERSPERGIUS, an eminent Swiss divine, was born in 1445, at Schaffhausen, where his father was a notary, but he dying about three years afterwards, his son was adopted by a relation who lived at Keysersberg, and educated there in his infancy. He afterwards pursued his more serious studies at Fribourg and Basil. When admitted into the church he was invited to preach at Wurzburgh, where he became so celebrated for pulpit oratory, that Augsbourg, Basil, and Strasburgh contended which should persuade him to settle among them. At length he gave the preference to Strasburgh, where he resided thirty-three years, edifying the people by his discourses and his example. Here he died March 10, 1510. He is said to have been the first who proposed that the sacrament should be administered to condemned persons. He was much admired by Wimphelingius, Beatus Rhenanus, and many of the eminent men of his time. His works, the principal of which are enumerated by Clement, as books of rare occurrence, are in German and Latin, and consist principally of "Sermons," often surcharged with metaphors and allegories, and sometimes with facetious remarks, but in general they are learned, and serve very much to illustrate the manners of the time, which he had the courage to censure, when erroneous, before persons of the highest rank or power, with intrepid boldness. Oberlin published in 1786, a curious life of Geiler, which we have not seen; the preceding account being taken from the authorities below.

GEINOZ (FRANCIS), member of the academy of inscriptions and belles lettres, and almoner of the general company of Swiss, was born at a small city in the canton of Friburg, in 1696. He assisted a considerable time in the "Journal des Savans," with credit, and was censor

1 Moreri.

• Melchior Adam in vitis Theolog.—Freheri Theatrum-Dict. Hist.—Clement Bibl. Curieuse,

royal of books; and his superior knowledge of Greek and Hebrew, his candour, sincerity, mildness, and integrity, made him beloved by all who knew him. He died at Paris, May 23, 1752, while engaged in a new edition of Herodotus, corrected from the MSS. in the king's library. There are some learned dissertations by him, in the Memoirs of the academy of inscriptions, on ostracism, the migrations of the Pelasgi, &c.'

GELASIUS the elder, was bishop of Cæsarea, in Palestine, and nephew of Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, by whom he was consecrated to Cæsarea, in the year 380. He is classed by St. Jerome and others, among the ecclesiastical writers of his age. He wrote several works, which have been commended for the correctness and purity of their style; but there are extant only some fragments explanatory of the apostles' creed, and of the traditions of the church, which are in the Greek collection of testimonies, under the name of John Damascenus, in the Codex Claromont. He died in the He died in the year 394.2

GELASIUS of Cyzicus, also bishop of Caesarea, flourished about the year 476. He compiled a history of the Nicene council, in three books, partly from an old manuscript of Dalmatius archbishop of Cyzicus, and from other authorities. It was published at Paris, Gr. & Lat. 1559.His style, according to Photius, was extremely low and bad, and the credit of his account, whether from himself or his manuscript, is according to Dupin, as bad as possible. Two books of pope Gelasius I. on the double nature in Christ, have been erroneously ascribed to him.' GELASIUS I. bishop of Rome, elevated to that see in the year 492, was successor to Felix II. He was engaged, as his predecessor had been, in the disputes between the eastern and western churches; and particularly contended with Euphemius, patriarch of Constantinople, about the name of Acacius, which the latter refused to expunge from the sacred list. He is said to have assembled a council of seventy bishops at Rome, in the year 494, where a decree was passed on the subject of canonical and apocryphal books; but the existence of the decree, if not of the council, is doubted by Cave, for very strong reasons. He died Nov. 19, 946. Several works of his are extant,

1 Moreri.-Dict. Hist.-Saxii Onomast.

? Cave, vol. I.-Fabric. Bibl. Græc.-Moreri.--Saxii Onomast.

3 Cave, vol. I-Moreri.-Dupin.-Saxii Onomast.

among which are, 1. Epistles. 2. A volume on the power of Anathema. 3. Against some Romans who continued to celebrate the Lupercalia. 4. Against the Pelagian heresy. 5. A book against Eutyches and Nestorius, all which are in the "Bibl. Patrum," of in the "Collectio Conciliorum." Dupin seems to have a very indifferent opinion of his writings, and there is little in his life that can be interesting unless in its connection with the history of the papal struggles for power.'

GELDENHAUR (GERARD EOBANUS), a learned German divine and historian, was born at Nimeguen, in 1482. He studied classical learning at Deventer, and went through his course of philosophy at Louvain with such success, that he was chosen to teach that science; and in that university he contracted a strict friendship with several learned men, particularly Erasmus. He made some stay at Antwerp, whence he was invited to the court of Charles of Austria, to be reader and historian to that prince; but, not liking to attend him into Spain, he entered into the service of Philip of Burgundy, bishop of Utrecht. He was his reader and secretary twelve years, that is, to 1524; after which, he executed the same functions at the court of Maximilian of Burgundy. Being sent to Wittemburg in 1526, in order to inquire into the state of the schools and of the church at that place, he faithfully reported what he had observed, and confessed he could not disapprove of a doctrine so conformable to the Scriptures, as that which he heard there; and upon this he forsook the popish religion, and retired towards the Upper Rhine. He married at Worms, and taught youth there for some time. Afterwards he was invited to Augsburg, to undertake the same' employment; and at length, in 1534, he went thence to Marpurg, where he taught history for two years, and then divinity to his death. He died of the plague, Jan. 10, 1542. The story of his being assassinated by robbers is amply disproved by Bayle. He was a man well skilled in poetry, rhetoric, and history.

His changing his religion, and his writings against the church of Rome, occasioned a quarrel between him and Erasmus. Erasmus, who reviled him under the name of Vulturius, called him a seditious fellow; and blamed him for publishing scoffing books, which only irritated princes

Dupin.-Bower.—Cave, vol. L

against Luther's followers. He blamed him also for prefixing the name and, some notes of himself to certain letters, the intent of which was to shew that heretics ought not to be punished. This was exposing Erasmus to the court of Rome, and to the popish powers; for it was saying in effect, that Erasmus had furnished the innovators with weapons to attack their enemies, which Erasmus resented for no better reason than that he was afraid to avow principles which he secretly maintained. He compared Geldenhaur to the traitor Judas; and instead of assisting him in his necessity, put him off with such coarse raillery as the following: "But, my dear Vulturius, since you have taken the resolution to profess an evangelical life, I wonder you find poverty uneasy; when St. Hilariou, not having money enough to pay his boat-hire, thought it cause of glory, that he had undesignedly arrived at such Gospel perfection. St. Paul also glories that he knew how to abound, and how to suffer need; and that, having nothing, he possessed all things. The same apostle commends certain Hebrews, who had received the Gospel, that they took the spoiling of their goods joyfully. And that, if the Jews suffer none to be poor among them, how much more does it become those who boast of the Gospel, to relieve the wants of their brethren by mutual charity; especially, since evangelical frugality is content with very little. Those who live by the spirit want no delicacies, if they have but bread and water; they are strangers to luxury, and feed on fasting. We read that the apostles themselves satisfied their hunger with ears of corn rubbed in their hands. Perhaps you may imagine I am jesting all this while. Very likely.-But others will not think so."

Gerard Geldenhaur was better known by the name of his country, than by that of his family; for he was usually called Gerardus Noviomagus; and Erasmus in his letters to him, gives him no other name. His works are, 1. "Historia Batavica, cum appendice de vetusta Batavorum nobilitate," Strasburg, 1533, but Vossius mentions an edition of 1520. 2. “De Batavorum insula.” 3. "Germaniæ Inferioris Historiæ," Strasburg, 1532. 4. "Vita Philippi à Burgundia, Episcopi Ultrajectensis," ibid. 1529. 5, Catalogus Episcoporum Ultrajectinorum," Marpurg, 1542, 8vo. .6. “ 6. "Epistola ad Gulielmum Geldria Principem gratulatoria de Principatuum suorum adoptione,'