Nicolas Coeffeteau

Who was Nicolas Coeffeteau?

Nicolas Coeffeteau was a French theologian, poet and historian born at Saint-Calais.

He entered the Dominican order and lectured on philosophy at Paris, being also ordinary preacher to Henry IV, and afterwards ambassador at Rome.

In 1606 he was vicar-general of the congregation of France, and received from Marie de' Medici the revenues of the sees of Lombez and Saintes. He also administered the diocese of Metz, and was nominated to the diocese of Marseille in 1621, but ill health obliged him here to take a coadjutor.

Coeffeteau won considerable distinction in the controversy against the Protestant reformers and also wrote a History of Rome from Augustus to Constantine. Many of his theological writings were collected in one volume, and at the time of his death he was engaged on a translation of the New Testament which is still in manuscript.

He was acclaimed for his command of the French language. Claude Favre de Vaugelas cited him as one of the two masters of the language at the time -"Nicolas Coeffeteau, dominicain, évêque de Marseille, un des fondateurs de la prose française, 1574-1623".