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Read Ebook: De Tribus Impostoribus A. D. 1230: The Three Impostors Translated (with notes and comments) from a French manuscript of the work written in the year 1716 with a dissertation on the original treatise and a bibliography of the various editions by Briggs Samuel Editor
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Ebook has 368 lines and 33435 words, and 8 pages
PAGE.
Introduction 3 Bibliography 7 Dissertation 26 Letter of Frederic the Emperor, to Otho, the Illustrious 37
TREATISE.
God, of 38 Reasons which have caused mankind to create for themselves an Invisible Being which has been commonly called God 44 God, what is 52 Religions, what the word signifies, and how and why such a great number have been introduced in the world 56 Moses, of 62 Numa Pompilius, of 71 Jesus Christ, of 72 Jesus Christ, of the Policy of 75 Jesus Christ, of the Morals of 80 Jesus Christ, of the Divinity of 84
Mahomet 88 Truths, sensible and obvious 93 Soul, of the 96 Demons, of Spirits called 101 Appendicitis 107 Mahomet, Edition "En Suisse," 1793 107 De Tribus Impostoribus, Edition MDIIC 111 Cornell University 145 Translations of Latin in the Text 146 The Gentle Reader--Quixotism 149
ERRATA.
P. 5, 2d paragraph, 1st line, Werner should read Weller.
P. 12, line 5, sermonen should read sermonem.
Original Mss., A. D. 1716, Contains--
Weller's reprint, 1876, Edition, 1598 contains 5800 words Latin.
NOTES
The History of the Three Infamous Impostors of this Age.
La vie et l'esprit de M. Benoit de Spinosa was published without the author's name, in Amsterdam 1719. In the "Preface du Copiste" it is stated that the author of it is not known, but that if a conjecture might be permitted it might be said, perhaps with certitude, that the book is the work of the late Mr. Lucas, so famous for his Quintessences and for his manners and way of living.
Kuno Fischer, in his Descartes und seine Schule. Zweiter Theil, Heidelberg, 1889, p. 101, says:
"The real author of the work is not known with entire certainty; probably the author was Lucas, a physician at the Hague, notorious in his own day; others name as author a certain Vroese."
Freudenthal, in his Die Lebensgeschichte Spinoza's. Leipzig, 1899, writing of the various conjectures as to the authorship of the book, states that W. Meyer has lately sought to prove that Johan Louckers, a Hague attorney, was the author, but that the authorship had not been settled.
Oettinger in his Bibliographie Biographie Universelle, Bruxelles 1854, p. 1707, gives Lucas Vroese as the author.
It has also been suggested that Lucas and Vroese were two men and together wrote the book.
The authority for ascribing the book to Vroese, of whose life no particulars seem to have been recorded, appears to be the following passage in the Dictionnaire Historique, par Prosper Marchand, ? la Haye, 1758, v. 1., p. 352:
"A la fin d'une copie manuscrit de ce Trait? que j'ai v?e et l?e, on lui donne pour v?ritable Auteur a Mr. Vroese, conseiller de la cour de Brabant ? la Haie, dont Aymon et Rousset retouch?rent le langage; et que ce dernier y ajouta la Dissertation ou R?ponse depuis imprim?e chez Scheurleer."
The name "Vroese" appears at the side of the colophon at end of our translation, but probably as a reference only.
This is probably a Latin edition of the original manuscript from which our translation was made.--Ed.
See translation Chap. 1 "Of God," first two lines.
DISRAELI'S CURIOSITIES OF LITERATURE.
Title, "Literary Forgeries."
"The Duc de la Valliere and the Abbe de St. Leger, once concerted together to supply the eager purchaser of literary rarities with a copy of "De Tribus Impostoribus," a book, by the date, pretended to have been printed in 1598, though probably a modern forgery of 1698. The title of such a book had long existed by rumor, but never was a copy seen by man. Works printed with this title have all been proved to be modern fabrications--a copy however of the 'introuvable' original was sold at the Duc de la Valliere's sale. The history of this volume is curious. The Duc and the Abbe having manufactured a text had it printed in the old Gothic character, under the title 'De Tribus Impostoribus.' They proposed to put the great bibliopobet, De Bure, in good humor, whose agency would sanction the imposition. They were afterwards to dole out copies at 25 louis each, which would have been a reasonable price for a book which no one ever saw! They invited De Bure to dinner, flattered and cajoled him, and, as they imagined at the moment they had wound him up to their pitch, they exhibited their manufacture--the keen-eyed glance of the renowned cataloguer of the 'Bibliographie Instructive' instantly shot like lightning over it, and like lightning, destroyed the whole edition. He not only discovered the forgery but reprobated it! He refused his sanction; and the forging Duc and Abbe, in confusion suppressed the 'livre introuvable'; but they owed a grudge to the honest bibliographer and attempted to write down the work whence the De Bures derive their fame."
The names are noted on title page in pencil.
The French nation recognize the Supreme Being, the Immortality of the Soul, and the Freedom of Worship.
Treatise of the Dominant Religions.
In old prints Moses is always depicted with horns on his forehead.
When they weep at Rome, they do not laugh in Paris.
There is a measure in everything.
As to the printing of the book they can bring forward no proof whatever of its having being done prior to this date and it is impossible to conceive that Frederick, surrounded as he was by enemies, would have circulated a work which gave a fair opportunity of proclaiming his infidelity. It is probable therefore that there were only two copies, the original one and that sent to Otho of Bavaria. J. L. R. L.
This phrase is frequently employed to express ecclesiastical criticism. Its first application however had a more pungent meaning. The individual here alluded to having boldly assailed the errors of the Church was attacked one evening by an assassin. Fortunately the blow did not prove fatal; but the weapon having been left in the wound, on his recovery he wore it in his girdle labelled, "The Theological Stylus," or Pen of the Church. The trenchant powers of this instrument have more frequently been employed to repress truth, than to refute argument.
Sep. 20, 1703.
Frederick Barbarossa was Emperor of Germany in 1152 and was drowned during Crusade in Syria June 10, 1190. He created Henry the Lion Duke of Bavaria in 1154, expelled him in 1180, and Henry died 1195.
Otho the Great, Count of Witelspach, was made Duke of Bavaria 1180, and died 1183. He was the grandfather of Otho the Illustrious, who gained the Palatinate and was assassinated in 1231. He married the daughter of Henry the Lion about 1230.
Henry VI succeeded to the Empire on death of his father, Frederick Barbarossa, 1190, and died 1195--that is if Henry the Lion and Henry VI are identical.
Frederick II, son of Henry VI, began to reign 1195, and was living 1243.
The succession of Popes during the period 1152-1254 , was as follows:
Anastasius IV, 1153, Adrian IV, 1154,
Pierre des Vignes, suspected of having conspired against the life of the Emperor, was condemned to lose his eyes, and was handed over to the inhabitants of Pisa, his cruel enemies: and where despair hastened his death in an infamous dungeon where he could hold intercourse with no one.
In "Volney's Lectures on History," it is said: "If a work be translated it always receives a colouring which is more or less faint or is vivid according to the opinions and ability of the Translator." From an examination of other translations of this Treatise, I am assured that Volney's statement above has actuated and governed all who have been previously engaged with this work. I can assure the readers hereof, that the Treatise contained herein is a literal translation of the manuscript and the notes found therein, and no liberties have been taken with the text.
Any additional notes from other sources are so marked. A. N.
Moses killed at one time 24,000 men for opposing his law.
It is written in the First Book of Kings, ch. 22, v. 6, that Ahab, King of Israel, consulted 400 prophets, and found them entirely false in the success of their predictions.
Man is the noblest work of God--but nobody ever said so but man.--Fra Elbertus.
So of water, however, it may be subject to generation and corruption, as long as it is substance it is not subject to separation and division.
These, among us, are the Astrologers and Fanatics.
The Talmud remarks that the Rabbins deliberated whether they should omit the Book of Proverbs and that of Ecclesiastes from the number of canonicals, and would have done so had they not found in several places that they eulogized the Mosaic law. They would have done the same with the prophecies of Ezekiel had not a certain Chananias undertook to harmonize them with the same law.
The versions that we have differ greatly in a thousand places, one with another, until the end of the book.
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