Étienne Le Camus (1632,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

–

Grenoble lat, Gratianopolis , commune status = Prefecture and commune , image = Panorama grenoble.png , image size = , caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...

, 1707) was a French cardinal.

Biography

Through the influence of his father, Nicolas le Camus, a state councillor, he was when still very young attached to the court as

almoner An almoner (} ' (alms), via the popular Latin '. History Christians have historically been encouraged to donate one-tenth of their income as a tithe to their church and additional offerings as needed for the poor. The first deacons, mentioned ...

of the king, and enjoyed the friendship of

Bossuet Bossuet is a French surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet (1627–1704), French bishop and theologian, uncle of Louis * Louis Bossuet Louis Bossuet (22 February 1663 – 15 January 1742) was a French parle ...

. The

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made him doctor of theology at the age of eighteen. The fact of his consorting with such men as Benserade, Vivonne, and Bussy drew upon him the severity of Mazarin, and he was for a while exiled to

Meaux Meaux () is a Communes of France, commune on the river Marne (river), Marne in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, Franc ...

. Recalled through the influence of Colbert, he retired in 1665 to

La Trappe Abbey La Trappe Abbey, also known as La Grande Trappe, is a monastery in Soligny-la-Trappe, Orne, France. It is known for being the house of origin of the Trappists, to whom it gave its name. History The site of the famous La Trappe Abbey was for ce ...

with de Rancé, and passed from his former levity to an asceticism that led him to

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. The publication of his letters by Ingold shows that

Jansenism Jansenism was an early modern theological movement within Catholicism, primarily active in the Kingdom of France, that emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace, and predestination. It was declared a heresy by th ...

was with Le Camus more a matter of personal sympathy and spiritual discipline than of doctrinal tenets. Made against his will Bishop of Grenoble in 1671, he proved himself zealous almost to excess in reforming abuses in his diocese. In the affair of the ''

régale ''Jura regalia'' is a medieval legal term which denoted rights that belonged exclusively to the king, either as essential to his sovereignty (''jura majora'', ''jura essentialia''), such as royal authority; or accidental (''jura minora'', ''jura a ...

'' he acted as intermediary between Rome and Versailles, and showed creditable courage before the omnipotent

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

. Pope Innocent XI, having made him cardinal instead of Harlay, presented by the king, he was not allowed till 1689 to go to Rome to receive the insignia of his dignity. Le Camus founded in the Diocese of Grenoble two seminaries and several charitable institutions.

Works

Besides a ''Recueil d'ordonnances synodales'' we have from him the ''Défense de la Virginité perpétuelle de la Mère de Dieu'' (Paris, 1680), and numerous letters published by Ingold.

References

;Attribution * This article cites: **BELLET, ''Histoire du Cardinal Le Camus'' (Paris 1886) **SAINTE-BEUVE, ''Port-Royal'', IV (Paris, 1901), 528 **ST-SIMON, ''Mémoires'' (ed. HACHETTE), IV 59 to be corrected by LALOUETTE, ''Abrégé de la vie de M. le Cardinal Le Camus'' (Paris, 1720) **INGOLD, ''Lettres du Card. Le Camus'' in Bulletin de l'Académie Delphinoise, 2nd series, I. {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Camus, Etienne 1632 births 1707 deaths University of Paris alumni 17th-century French cardinals Clergy from Paris Bishops of Grenoble 18th-century French cardinals Heads of the Bâtiments du Roi