Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 8.djvu/839

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LAMBERT


757


LAMBERT


continue his studies, and at the University of Amster- dam, came in contact with many scholars, especially the philologian Gerhard Johann Voss. He later left the Netherlands at his uncle's wish and went to Paris, where his reiationship with the celclirated Holste, as well as his own aliilities, secured him access to the most distinguishetl sa\ants of his time. He here received the degree of Doctor of Laws. After finishing his studies, he made a tour through France, Liguria, and Etruria, and spent two years in Rome, where luider the special direction of his uncle, who in the interim had become papal librarian, he undertook classical and historical researches. When barely nineteen, his learned work (Lucubrationes critica; in Auli Gellii Noctes Atticas, Paris, 1047) had already brought him the approval of the learned pulilic of Paris.

On his return to Hamburg, he was made in 1652 professor of history at the gjinnasium, and in 1664 became rector. He had many enemies on account of his success, and, being accused of atheism, decided to give up his position. He was confirmed by his un- fortunate marriage in his decision to leave the coun- try antl return to Rome. Here he soon won the fa- vour of Alexander VH. Queen Christina of Sweden, then resident at Rome, also exercised a great influence over him, and soon he entered the Catholic Church. To secure a permanent position he went to Vienna, where Emperor Leopold appointed him librarian and court historiographer. In this position he performed great services by his arrangement of the library, and especially by his catalogues of its treasures ("Cora- mentariorum de Bibliotheca Csesarea Vindobonensi libri Vni", Vienna, 1665-79; re-edited by Kollar, 1766-82). These catalogues are even to-day of value, being especially important for the numerous contribu- tions they contain to our knowledge of the Old Ger- man language and literature. Of great importance for the history of literature is his "Prodromus His- torias literariie" (Hamburg, 1659), of which a second enlarged edition was issued by J. A. Fabricius (Leip- zig, 1710), with a biographical sketch of the author, published separately at Hamburg in 1724. The " Proilromus" was the first comprehensive history of literature, chronologically arranged. Lambeck also published among other works a liistory of his native town (" Origines Hamburgenses ab anno 808 ad an- num 1292", 2 vols., 1652-61), and researches into the history of the Byzantine Empire ("Syntagma origi- num et antiqviitatum Constantinopolitanarum" Paris, 1655).

Hoffmann, P. Lambeck alsSchriftstelleru. Bibliothekar (Soestf IS64); Karajan, Kaiser Leopold 1. u. P. Lambeck (Vienna, 1S6S).

Patricius Schlager.

Lambert (Landebehtus), Saint, martyr, Bishop of Maestricht, b. at Maestricht between 633 and 638; d. at Liege, between 698 and 701. His parents, who belonged to the nobility, gave him a very religious edu- cation, and chose as his preceptor St. Landoaldus, priest of the cathedral church at Maestricht. Later, Lambert received instruction from St. Theodardus (668 or 669), whom he succeeded in 070 as Bishop of Maes- tricht. During the calamitous days of Ebroin, Mayor of the Palace, Lambert, having defended the interests of King Childeric, was forced to flee from Maestricht. While Pharamundus administered his see, Lambert spent seven years (674-081) in the well-known Abbey of Stavelot, where he edified the monks by his saintly life. In 681 Ebroin received his well-earned retribu- tion, and Pepin of Heristal became mayor of the palace, at first of .^ustrasia, but in 687 of the whole domain of the Franks. Pepin, who liked Lambert, permitted him to return to Maestricht and resume the administration of his see. Some time later we find Lambert as a missionary in Toxandria, the Kempen- land and Brabant of to-day. In order to spread the Gospel, he descended the River Meuse as far as Tiel


and laboured along its banks in company with St. Willibrord, who had come from England in 091. It is very probable that Lambert came in contact with Sts. VViro, Plechelmus, and Otger, who had built a church and monastery on the Pietersburg, later called the Odilienberg, near Roermond. St. Landrada aidcil Lambert in fovmding the Abbey of MunsterbiLsen.

For several centiu-ies a controversy has been carried on concerning the manner of the saint's death. Ac- cording to tradition, Lambert became a martyr to his defence of marital fidelity. Tlic Bollaiidists, Ma- billon, Valois, Lecointe, Pagi and others held, however, that the saint was killed by Frankish nobles in revenge for the failure of a plundering expedition. Kurth in 1876 critically examined the centuries-old tradition and, documents in hand, proved beyond further doubt that Lambert was martyred Ijeeause of his defence of the marriage tie. Pepin of Heristal lived for many years in irreproachable wedlock with the pious Plec- trude, who bore him two sons. Later he eittcred into imlawful relations with Alpais, who became the mother of Charles Martel. When no one had the courage to remonstrate with Pepin, Lambert went to his court like another John the Baptist. Alpais, fearing that Pepin might heed the admonitions of the saint, appealed to her brother Dodo. The latter sought revenge and caused Lambert to be assassi- nated in the chapel of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, built by St. Monulphus, at Liege. His heart was pierced by a javelin while he was at the altar. The servants of the martyr placed his remains in a vessel, descended the Meuse to Maestricht, and buried them in the ceme- tery of St. Peter, in the vault of his parents, Aper and Herisplindis, beneath the walls of Maestricht. Be- tween 714 and 723, St. Hubert exhumed the remains and had them translated to Liege, whither he had transferred, presumably as early as 723, his episcopal see. The saint's feast is celebrated on 17 Sept. A large number of churches have St. Lambert as their patron.

Acta SS., Sept., V; Stephanus, Vita S. Lamberti in Migne, P. L., CXXXII, 643; Demarteau, Vie de S, Lambert ccriie en fcrs par Hucbald de St-Amtind, et documents du X"** siicle (Li^ge, 1S7S); Albek.s. De U. Lambertus, XX' bisschop van Maastricht in Jaarboekje van Atberdingk Thym (Amsterdam, 1S96) ; Kurth, Etude critique sur St. Lambert et son premier bio- graphe in Annales de l' Academic dWrcheologie de Belgique, XIII, 3rd series. III.

P. Albeks.

Lambert Le Begue, priest and reformer, lived at Liege, Belgium, about the midtlle of the twelfth cen- tury. The son of poor people, he was ordained priest in a more or less legitimate way, and was probably parish-priest of St-Christophe at Liege. He began preaching against the abuses and the vices of the clergy, protesting against simony, the ordination of sons of priests, and certain customs in the administra- tion of the Sacrament of Baptism and the celebration of Mass. Some of his opinions are not above suspi- cion, his ideas for instance concerning the day of re.st, and Masses for the dead. In time he gatheretl about him a popular following, for whom lu> translated into the vernacular the Life of the Blessed Virgin, the Acts of the Apostles, and the Epistles of St. Paul, with commentaries; these translations unfortunately have not been preserved. Probably at this period he or- ganized the association known as Beguiues, whose name cannot be derived philologically from "to beg" (i. e. to pray), but is probably derived from the name bigue (stammerer) given to Lambert, to whom, in fact, the foundation is attributed by several con- temporary and triistworthy authorities. But he also had adversaries, especially among the clergy, and it was to refute them that he wrote a defence of his theo- ries, entitled " .^ntigraphum Petri ". His writings re- veal him a man very learned for his time; they abound with quotations, not only from the Bilile, but also from the Fathers of the Church (e. g. St. Gregory, St,