FENELON, François de Salignac de Lamotte, was descended of an ancient and illustrious family, and born at the castle of Fénélon in Perigord, on the 6th of August 1651. Under the eyes of a virtuous father, he advanced in his literary studies with equal rapidity and success; and being from childhood nurtured in classical antiquity, and in particular familiarised in his solitude with the master pieces of Grecian genius, his taste was formed on the purest models, whilst his benign genius was simultaneously developed. Called to Paris by his uncle, the Marquis of Fénélon, to complete his philosophical studies, and commence the course of theology requisite for the vocation to which he was destined, he, at the age of fifteen, underwent the same trial as Bossuet, and preached before an auditory, less distinguished, perhaps, than that which assembled in the hôtel de Rambouillet, but still highly respectable, who listened to him with a mixture of surprise and admiration. But this premature reputation rather alarmed than gratified the Marquis of Fénélon, who, in order to withdraw the young apostle from the seductions of the world and of glory, placed him in the seminary of St Sulpice∙ In this retreat Fénélon imbibed the evangelical spirit, and acquired the friendship of the virtuous Tronson, the superior of the establishment; and here also he received holy orders. About this time his religious fervour inspired him with the design of devoting himself to the missions in Canada. But being thwarted in this scheme by the apprehensions of his family and the weakness of his constitution, he soon turned his regards towards the missions of the Levant, particularly Greece, where the sacred and the profane, St Paul and Socrates, the church of Corinth, the Parthenon, and Parnassus, equally invited his poetical and religious imagination. Fortunately for the Catholic church and for France, however, this project also misgave; and Fénélon, diverted from distant missions, devoted himself to an apostleship, which he thought not less useful, namely, the instruction of the Nouvelles Catholiques, or newly-converted women in Paris. The duties and cares of this employment, in which he buried his genius during ten years, prepared him for the composition of his first work, entitled Traite de lEducation des Filles, a masterpiece of delicacy and of reason, which has not been equalled by the author of Emile and painter of Sophie. This work was intended for the Duchess of Beauvilliers, the pious mother of a numerous family. In the modest obscurity of his ministry, Fénélon had already formed with the Dukes of Beauvilliers and of Chevreuse that virtuous friendship which resisted equally the seductions of favour and the frowns of disgrace, the smiles of the court and the decree of exile. But in the case of Bossuet he met with an attachment which was destined to be much less durable. Admitted into familiarity with this great man, Fénélon studied his genius and his life; and the example of Bossuet, whose polemical religion exercised itself in controversies and conversions, probably suggested to him the Traite du Ministère des Pasteurs, a work in which he combats the heretics with a moderation which formed no part of the character of his illustrious model. The subject, the merit of this work, and the all-powerful suffrage of Bossuet in its favour, induced Louis XIV. to confide toFénélon thecharge of a new mission to Poitou. The rigorous uniformity which the French monarch was desirous of establishing in matters of religion, and the resistance which sprung from the oppressive measures adopted for this purpose, often obliged the monarch to cause his missionaries be supported by troops. Fénélon, however, not only rejected peremptorily the co-operation of the dragoons, but even reserved to himself the choice of the ecclesiastical colleagues who should share with him in the ministry of persuasion and gentleness. He converted without persecuting, and made the faith of which he was the apostle an object o love instead of hatred. The importance which was then attached to such missions fixed all eyes upon Fenelon, who had so happily acquitted himself of that entrusted to his care. . . ,

A great object was now presented to his ambition an his talents. The dauphin, grandson of Louis XIV., a [7:9:505]at length passed the period of childhood, and the king was looking out for a person to whom the education of the young prince might be confided. This was in the year 1689. By the favour of Madame de Maintenon, virtue obtained the preference in this appointment. Μ. de Beauvilliers was named governor, and he recommended to the king Fénélon as preceptor of the young prince. These virtuous friends, seconded by the attentions of men worthy of imitating them, commenced the task of educating the future king; and history attests that there was never seen a more perfect concurrence of principle and exertion. But Fénélon, by the natural superiority of his genius, formed the soul of this reunion; it was he who, transported by the hope of one day realizing the beau ideal of a prince on the throne, and viewing the happiness of France as in a great measure dependent on the education of its future sovereign, destroyed with admirable art all the dangerous germs which nature and the premature sentiment of power had implanted in his youthful breast, and gradually moulded an almost indomitable character to the habit of the most salutary virtues. This system of education, precious vestiges of which remain in some of the writings of Fénélon, appears to have been a masterpiece of that genius which devotes itself to advance the happiness of mankind. When brought into the midst of the court, Fénélon, without intermingling in its intrigues, secured general admiration by the graces of his brilliant and ready wit, and the charm of his noble and eloquent conversation. In his character the apostle and the great lord seemed to be strangely united. Imagination and genius escaped him on all occasions; and the most refined politeness at once embellished and rendered pardonable in the eyes of courtiers, the ascendency of his talents. This personal superiority indeed excited much more admiration than even the writings which proceeded from his pen, and, at the period of his reception in the Academy, was made the subject of eloquent commendation. “On sent,” says La Bruyère, writing of him soon afterwards, “la force et l’ascendant de ce rare esprit, soit qu’il prêche de génie et sans préparation, soit qu’il prononce un discours étudié et oratoire, soit qu’il explique ses pensées dans la conversation; toujours maitre de l’oreille et du coeur de ceux qui l’écoutent, il ne leur permet pas d’envier ni tant d’élévation, ni tant de faculté de délicatesse de politesse.” This ascendency of virtue, of grace, and of genius, which excited in the hearts of the friends of Fénélon a tenderness mixed with enthusiasm, and which had even won Madame de Maintenon, in spite of her distrust and reserve, proved altogether unavailing against the prepossessions of Louis XIV. This monarch no doubt esteemed the man to whom he had confided the education of his grandson, but he never had any relish for his society. It is supposed indeed that the brilliant and ready elocution of Fénélon was distasteful to Louis, intolerant as he was of any sort of pre-eminence except his own. But if we cast our eyes on the letter in which Fénélon, in an expansion of confidence, informed Madame de Maintenon “that Louis XIV. had no idea of his duties as a king,” we shall probably find, in the expression of this honest but uncourtly opinion, a better explanation of the aversion of a monarch accustomed to adulation, than in any supposed jealousy of the superiority of his conversational powers. Fénélon passed five years in the eminent situation of preceptor to the dauphin, without asking or receiving anything; and, indeed, during his residence at court he had preserved the most irreproachable disinterestedness. Louis XIV. however, who knew how to recompense merit, e 'en though its possessor might not be personally agreeable to himself, wished to repair this oversight, and, in 1694, named Fénélon Archbishop of Cambrai.

But at this moment of favour and prosperity his credit ¾as destined to receive a blow, which would have inflicted a mortal wound on a less inviolable reputation. Fénélon, whose natural temperament disposed him to cherish a lively and spiritual devotion, had for some time fancied that he recognised some of his own principles in the mouth of a pious mad woman, who, not doubt, had great talents for peisuasion, since she obtained an extraordinary influence over several superior minds. Madame Guyon, writing and discoursing on grace and on pure love, at first persecuted and arrested, soon afterwards admitted into the intimate society of the Duke of Beauvilliers, received by Madame de Maintenon, and authorized to disseminate her doctrine in St Cyr, then suspected by Bossuet, arrested of new, interrogated, and condemned, served as a pretext for the disgrace of Fénélon. The inexorable Bossuet, who loved not the mystical subtilties and refinements concerning divine love, with which the lively and tender imagination of Fénélon was captivated, wished to bring it about that the new Archbishop of Cambrai should himself condemn the errors of a woman who had been his friend. Fénélon, however, refused, both from conscience and delicacy, to gratify his antagonist in this particular. Fearing to compromise opinions which were dear to him, wishing to manage and restrain an unfortunate woman, whose only offence appeared to consist in some venial exaggeration about the love of God, and perhaps also shocked at the theological haughtiness of Bossuet, who pressed upon him as if for the purpose of proselytism, he stood upon the defensive, and published his Maximes des Saintes, which may be regarded as an indirect apology for, or even as a subdued exposition of, the principles of Madame Guyon. In an age when a religious opinion was a political event, the first appearance of this work excited murmurs of astonishment; and all those who had been secretly envious of the genius and the promotion of Fénélon, declared loudly against the errors of his theology. Bossuet, a man incapable of indulging mean or unworthy sentiments, but at the same time inflexible, impatient of contradiction, and regardless of all external observances, when he believed the faith to be compromised, denounced to Louis XIV. in the midst of his court, the alleged heresy of the Archbishop of Cambrai; and at the moment when this attack was made upon Fénélon, the burning of his palace at Cambrai, and the consequent loss of his library, manuscripts, and papers, put his patience to a new trial, yet only drew from him the touching remark, “It is better that the fire should have consumed my dwelling than the cottage of a poor labourer.” Nevertheless Bossuet, committed by his declaration to the king, prepared to pursue his rival, and seemed eager to extort from him a recantation; whilst, on the other hand, Madame de Maintenon, hitherto the friend and protectress of Fénélon, treated him with the greatest coldness. In the mean time Fénélon submitted his book to the judgment of the holy see. Bossuet, however, having already composed remarks, in which bitter and vehement censure is surrounded with ostentatious expressions of friendship and regret, proposed a conference; but this Fénélon declined, preferring to defend his book at the tribunal to which he had appealed. It was then that he received orders to quit the court and retire into his diocese; a circumstance which occasioned great grief to the Duke of Burgundy. The cabal wished to profit by the fall of Fénélon to overthrow the Duke of Beauvilliers; but the latter was saved by his own virtuous conduct; for his devotion to the cause his unfortunate friend interested the generosity of Louis XIV. and their design miscarried. Notwithstanding the evident desne of this monarch, however, the court of Rome hesitated to condemn an archbishop so illustrious as Fenelon∙ But thy repugnance evinced by Innocent VI1I∙ only served to stimulate the talents of the accuser and accused; and, whilst [7:9:506]the judges (a commission consisting of ten cardinals) remained undecided, the writings of the two adversaries succeeded one another with prodigious rapidity. The contest had, in fact, now changed its character. After having exhausted the dogma, Bossuet threw himself upon the facts; and the Relation du Quiétisme, written with equal spirit and malignity, seemed calculated to involve Fénélon in a portion of the ridicule which inseparably attached to Madame Guyon. The Abbé Bossuet, an unworthy nephew of the Bishop of Meaux, extended still further these personal inculpations, and, having collected some odious rumours, sought to impeach the purity of Fénélon’s character. Never did the indignation of a virtuous and calumniated spirit display itself in greater eloquence. Fénélon, in his defence, demolished these vile accusations; and it required new letters from Louis XIV. prepared by Bossuet, and new intrigues, carried even to the extent of menace, to extort from the court of Rome a reluctant condemnation, which, when obtained, was found to be softened both in the form and in the expressions.^[1. The interest of this discussion, so foreign to the ideas of our age, has been admirably preserved in the excellent History ofFené<> “by M∙ de Bausset, in which will be found an animated picture of the court of Rome and of the court of France, which took such a hvθ- 1y interest in this frivolous question, which, however, was aggrandized by the opinions of the time, and the prodigious talents of tie rival disputants. ] But the long and glorious resistance of the Archbishop of Cambrai had exasperated to the utmost the resentment of Louis XIV.; and the hesitation of the court of Rome to condemn him rendered his disgrace at that of France more irrecoverable than ever. When the brief, so long delayed, and obtained after so much discussion and intrigue, at length arrived in 1699, Fénélon hastened to subscribe it, and to ratify his own condemnation by a mandatory letter, conceived in the most touching and simple language, although Bossuet did not fail to discover in it much parade and ambiguity.^[2. Pope Innocent, who appears to have heartily disapproved the violent proceedings adopted against the Archbishop of Cambrai, wrote thus to the prelates who had particularly distinguished themselves as adversaries of Fénélon: Peccavit excessu amoris divini, s<- vos peccastis defectu amoris proximi; one of the most pungent reproofs, perhaps, which is to be found in all history. . ]

The modest submission of Fénélon, his silence, his episcopal virtues, and the admiration which these had inspired, would not, in all probability, have re-opened to him the doors of the court of Louis XIV.; but an unexpected event, which occurred at this time, served to irritate that monarch more than ever against him. The Télémaque, composed several years previously during the period of his favour, was published some months after the affair about Quietism, through the infidelity of a domestic who had been employed to transcribe the manuscript, and who, it appears, had contrived to take a copy for himself. The work, though suppressed in France, was reproduced by the presses of Holland, and obtained throughout all Europe a success which malignity rendered injurious to Louis XIV., by seeking in it allusions to the conquests and misfortunes of his reign. This prince, who had always disliked the political notions of Fénélon, and had even described him as “un bel esprit chimérique,” regarded the author of Télémaque as a detractor of his glory, who to the guilt of ingratitude added the more irritating injustice of satire. There cannot be a greater absurdity, however, than to construe this production as a political satire, or to seek in it for allegorical and premeditated censure of Louis XIV.; all the details being, in fact, combined in the best manner imaginable for disconcerting allusions, and avoiding as much as possible the inevitable fatality of resemblances. We are convinced indeed that this generous precaution ocču-pied the mind of Fénélon whilst composing the work, and that, writing for the happiness of nations, he selected those primitive manners, and antique forms of society, which are the most remote from the picture of life presented by modern Europe, but which served equally well to embody his poetical conception, and to suggest those instructive lessons which it was his grand object to inculcate. .Besides, why should he have thought of representing Louis XIV. under the character of the imprudent Idomeneus, or that of the sacrilegious Adrastus, rather than under the masterly delineation of the great and virtuous Sesostris?

Fénélon, however, soon learned the indelible impression which Télémaque had produced upon the heart of the king ; and, resigned to his banishment from court, which he had sometimes the weakness to call his disgrace, he sought to console himself for the loss of the royal favour by endeavouring to diffuse happiness around him in his retreat at Cambrai. The sanctity of the ancient bishops, the severity of the primitive church, the attraction of the most indulgent virtue, the charm of the most captivating politeness, the utmost eagerness to fulfil even the humblest duties of the ministry, indefatigable goodness, inexhaustible charity; such are the traits of Fénélon’s character as delineated by an eloquent and virtuous prelate, who knew him well, and who dwells with enthusiasm on the picture which he has drawn of his illustrious friend. The first care of Fénélon was to instruct the clergy of a seminary which he had founded; nor did he even disdain to teach their catechism to the children of his diocese. Like the bishops of ancient days, he often ascended the pulpit of his cathedral, and, trusting at once to his faith and his feelings, spoke without preparation, diffusing all the treasures of his natural eloquence. When the misfortunes of the war, which chastised the ambition of Louis XIV., brought the allied army into the diocese of Cambrai, the occasion called for new efforts and new sacrifices upon the part of the good archbishop, who, by his wisdom, his firmness, and the nobleness of his language, inspired the hostile commanders with a salutary respect for the unfortunate provinces of Flanders. Marlborough and Eugène indeed were worthy of listening to the voice of the great man whose genius and worth they so well appreciated.^[3. It is now known that the Vie du Prince Eugène, though written as if it were au autobiography in the first person, is the production of the Prince de Ligne. In this clever performance, the veteran is made to speak thus of the great preachers of his ( line . Quand Bourdaloue me fait tout craindre, Massillon me fait tout espérer. Nous sommes nés la même année, et je l’ai connu a . s °entree dans le monde, parfaitement aimable. Bossuet m’étonne; Fénélon me touche. Je les avais vus aussi dans ma jeunesse Marlborough et moi, nous avons rendu au dernier tous les honneurs possibles, quand nous avons pris Cambrai.” {Vie du Prince Eugew, p. 225. Paris, 1810, 8vo.) 1 > ⅛ 1 ]

The situation of Cambrai on the frontiers of France attracted to the archiepiscopal residence many strangers, none of whom approached or quitted its lord without being affected with a‘sort of religious admiration. Not tomention Ramsay, who passed several years under his roof, the celebrated Marshal Munich, and the unfortunate Chevalier de St George, called James HL, experienced the delight of his society, and derived instruction from his superior sagacity. By the wise counsels which he gave to James III., Fénélon showed his high esteem for the English constitution, powerful alike against despotism on the one hand, and anarchy on the other. The archbishop was exempt from that narrow patriotism which undervalues whatever exists beyond the frontiers. His virtuous and benevolent spirit [7:9:507]concerned itself for the welfare of the whole human family. ' « I love my family,” said he, “better than myself; I love my country better than my family; but I love the human race better than my country.” The humanity of Fénélon was not, however, confined to exaggerated speculations and impracticable generalities, which always suppose great ignorance of the details of human affairs. His politics were not the dream of a virtuous but fanciful mind. He had seen and judged both the court dnd the world; he was acquainted with the history of all ages; and he was endowed with an independence of spirit which raised him above the prejudices of his age and nation. In the different memoirs which he addressed to the Duke of Beauvilliers may be seen proofs of the wisdom of his views respecting the greatest interests, particularly the succession to the throne of Spain, the policy best suited to Philip V., the views of the allies, the conduct of the war, and the necessity of peace. The disastrous war of the succession having brought the theatre of action near to the archiepiscopal residence of Fénélon, afforded him an opportunity, after ten years’ absence, of seeing the young prince whom he had formed, and who had just assumed the command of the French troops. It cannot be disguised, however, that, in the command of armies, the pupil of Fénélon fell far below the promise of his youth and the opinion of France respecting him. The letters of the archbishop to the Duke of Burgundy, at this decisive epoch, evince a severe frankness, and show the ascendency which the master had acquired over the mind of the scholar; so much so, indeed, as to create a suspicion that the young prince, though well informed, docile, and virtuous, was of too timid a genius. In these letters also severe judgments are pronounced on all the generals who then formed the hope of France. Fené-Ion, in fact, though he possessed great sweetness of disposition, had not a little of domination in his character. His ideas were absolute and decisive; the promptitude and force of his mind rendered his judgments energetic and inflexible. But the continual attention which he gave to the political interests of France in no degree diminished his zeal for the affairs of religion and the church; and those who have been accustomed to honour him as a philosopher, will perhaps be surprised to find him entering into all ecclesiastical discussions with an ardour equal to that of Bossuet himself. When the unfortunate disputes about Jansenism were, after a long interruption, revived, Fénélon wrote against men “vho did not imitate him in his respect for the court of Rome, and he soon found himself engaged in a controversy scarcely less animated than that which had taken place concerning Quietism.

The courtiers supposed that in acting thus Fénélon had views of ambition and flattery. But if he had desired to regain the favour of the sovereign, he employed, about the same period, a much more effectual method for accomplishing his object, by feeding at his own expense the whole French army during the disastrous winter of 1709. His aim m both cases was to serve religion and his country. The same sentiments dictated the view which he presented the following year of the evils of France, and also the project ff associating the nation with the government, by convoking an assembly of the notables, a proposition remarkable m itself, and still more so when considered in connection with subsequent events. In the memoir which contains the exposition of this scheme, Fénélon shows that he had rightly estimated the strength and the weakness of despotism, as well as the salutary power of liberty. Meanwhile, an unexpected event appeared to accelerate the moment when the counsels of Fénélon were to govern France. The grand dauphin died, and the Duke of Burgundy, long oppressed by the mediocrity of his father, saw himself all once brought close to the throne of which he was heir, and to the king, whose stay and support he now became. His virtues, freed from a jealous tutelage, had at length scope for action; and the pupil of Fénélon showed himself worthy of his master. Full of hope and joy, the latter wrote to the young prince, who, according to St Simon, reigned in advance, “Il ne faut pas que tous soient à un seul, mais un.seul doit etre a tous pour faire leur bonheur ;” language which, we believe, has but rarely been addressed to the heirs apparent of thrones. But whilst Fénélon was devising plans for promoting the welfare of France, and advancing the glory of its future sovereign, all his hopes were blasted by the sudden death of the young heir of the old king, who remained unshaken amidst all the humiliations of his glory, and all the disasters of his family. Fénélon survived this event some time, and, notwithstanding his grief, laboured to prevent the evils incident to a long and inevitable minority. In several confidential memoirs which he wrote on this subject, we discover the novelty of his political views, and that spirit of liberty which, in his age, was not the least of its innovations. One of these papers is devoted to a discussion of the probabilities of the guilt of the Duke of Orleans, and whether he was actuated by an ambition which required other crimes besides that which had been laid to his charge; a memoir in which, without dwelling upon all the horrors of the popular reports, he judges severely the scandalous profligacy of the Duke of Orleans, and condemns his vices in the tone and language which it became a Christian bishop to assume. The last public discussion in which Fénélon engaged related to the bull Unigenitus, which, as is well known, gave rise to much controversy, and occupied his attention towards the close of his life. Malignity has supposed that the zeal of Fénélon in this matter was sharpened by an old grudge against the Cardinal de Noailles; but when the conduct of this virtuous and excellent man seems to be authorized by his duty, it is not necessary to explain it by reference to his alleged weaknesses. Faithful above all things to his episcopal character, he conceived himself bound to combat errors which he considered as calculated to disturb the consciences of men, and to interrupt the repose of the church. But his wine of life was now upon the lees. His friends, like the travellers on the bridge in the Vision of Mirza, had dropped off one by one, till the Duke of Beauvilliers alone remained to him; and when the latter was also removed by death, Fénélon followed him to the grave at the brief interval of four months. This great and good man expired on the 7th January 1715, at the age of sixty-four; and his death, which a slight fall had accelerated, was, like his life, that of a virtuous and exemplary Christian bishop. In the Dissertations prefixed to this work (vol. i. p∙ 335) the reader will find the characters of Fénélon and Bossuet ably contrasted, by Sir James Mackintosh.

The following list of the works of Fénélon includes every thing of any consequence which proceeded from his pen: 1. Traite de l’Education des Filles, 1681 and 1687; 2. Traite du Ministere des Pasteurs, 1688, in 12mo; 3. Explication des Maximes des Saints, 1697, in 12mo; 4. Aventures de Télémaque, 1699, the editions of which are innumerable; 5. Dialogues des Morts, composes pour l’education d’un Prince, 1712, in 12mo; 6. Dialogues sur l ’ Eloquence en general, et sur celle de la l-haire en particulier, avec une Lettre à l’Academie Française, 1718, in 12mo; 7. Examen de la Conscience d’une Pci, 1734; 8. Lettres sur divers sujets, concernant la Religion et la Métaphysique, 1718; 9. Démonstration de l’ Existence de Dieu, tirée de la connaissance de la Nature, et proportionee a la faible intelligence des plus simples, 1713, in 12mo; Recueil de Sermons choisis sur différents sujets, 1710, in 12mo; 11. Oeuvres Spirituelles. There is no very complete edition of the [7:9:508]works of Fénélon. The clergy of France undertook one some years before the Revolution, and entrusted the preparation of it first to the Abbé Gallard, and afterwards to the Abbé de Querbeuf; but, from whatever cause, in this collection of the writings of Fénélon, which appeared at Paris in nine volumes 4to, 1787—1792, the reader will seek in vain for those on Quietism and Jansenism, his Explication des Maximes, and his Mandements. In the edition of the Oeuvres de Fénelon, published at Toulouse, 1809-1811, in nineteen vols. 12mo, the life of Fénélon by Querbeuf has been introduced, together with four Instructions Pastorales, and an Abrégé des Vies des anciens Philosophes, which are not contained in the former edition. Some years after the death of Fénélon there appeared Recueil de quelques Opuscules de Μ. de Salignae de Lamotte-Fenelon, archeveque de Cambrai, sur differentes matières importantes, in 8vo, a rare volume, which is precious as containing a detailed catalogue or notice of all his works, reprinted in the edition of Les Aventures de Télémaque published at Lyons in 1815. The eloge of Fenelon by D’Alembert will be found in the Histoire des Membres de l’ Academie Française (tom. i. and iii.). That of Laharpe gained the prize proposed by the Academy, whilst the abbe obtained the accessit. But the most complete biographical account of this illustrious man is that given by Μ. de Bausset, formerly bishop of Alais, in his Histoire de Fénélon, 1808, in 3 vols. 8vo, reprinted the year following with corrections and additions. (a.)