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Jean-Baptiste Boisot (July 1638 – 4 December 1694) was a French
Boisot was sent on a mission to
Louis XIV made him abbot of the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Vincent Besançon on his return.
Abbé Jean-Baptiste Boisot (1686)
L'abbé Jean-Baptiste Boisot (1639 – 1694)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boisot, Jean-Baptiste 1638 births 1694 deaths French abbots French philanthropists Clergy from Besançon 17th-century French Roman Catholic priests French book and manuscript collectors Date of birth unknown 17th-century philanthropists
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
Abbot
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...
, bibliophile
Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. A bibliophile or bookworm is an individual who loves and frequently reads and/or collects books.
Profile
The classic bibliophile is one who loves to read, admire and collect books, often ama ...
, and scholar. He founded the first French museum on his death in 1694 when he bequeathed his personal collection of artwork and manuscripts to the Benedictine monks of Saint-Vincent, Besançon. This collection became the Besançon Municipal Library.
Early life
Jean-Baptiste Boisot was the third son of Claude Boisot II, amerchant banker
A merchant bank is historically a bank dealing in commercial loans and investment. In modern British usage it is the same as an investment bank. Merchant banks were the first modern banks and evolved from medieval merchants who traded in commodi ...
who was governor of the imperial city of Besançon from 1652 to 1658. At the end of the sixteenth century, the Boisot family was ennobled, then attained high-ranking church positions with the help of François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois
François Michel Le Tellier, Marquis of Louvois (18 January 1641 – 16 July 1691) was the French Secretary of State for War during a significant part of the reign of Louis XIV. Together with his father, Michel le Tellier, the French Army would ...
.
Boisot was thirteen years old when he left his hometown to study civil
Civil may refer to:
*Civic virtue, or civility
*Civil action, or lawsuit
* Civil affairs
*Civil and political rights
*Civil disobedience
*Civil engineering
*Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism
*Civilian, someone not a membe ...
and canon law
Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...
in Dole
Dole may refer to:
Places
* Dole, Ceredigion, Wales
* Dole, Idrija, Slovenia
* Dole, Jura, France
** Arrondissement of Dole
* Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska
* Dole, Ljubušk ...
.
Travels
Boisot was sent on a mission to Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, Northern Italy, to the Marquis of Mortar, then governor of Milan, to negotiate with him sending reinforcements. Meanwhile, the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle was signed, and the king restored the Franche-Comté. It is for this reason that Boisot exiled himself and left Savoy in 1673 and Italy in 1674. He remained in Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, preferring to stay in Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
, studying at the Escorial Library until 1678. During these travels he collected a great number of paintings, medals, bronzes, and of other fine art.
The Abbey of Saint-Vincent
Louis XIV made him abbot of the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Vincent Besançon on his return.
Death
Boisot died on 4 December 1694, at the age of fifty-six, at his abbey. He bequeathed to his hometown of Besançon its most valuable asset, its library. The magistrates of Besançon made him magnificent funeral orations, which they attended en masse. On 9 December, the city of Besançon decided to celebrate an office for the repose of his soul to the Cordeliers. Several exchanges were carried out between the mayor and the Benedictines to establish an inventory of his collection on 5 January 1695.Library
Boisot's will of 1694 established the Besançon Municipal Library under the control of the Benedictines of Saint Vincent. This is the first example of a private collection in France being converted into a public collection, and is often cited as the first French museum. Boisot's bequest required that the city maintain and provide free access to the collection. The collection includes his papers of cardinal Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle and his correspondence with Madeleine de Scudéry.References
External links
Abbé Jean-Baptiste Boisot (1686)
L'abbé Jean-Baptiste Boisot (1639 – 1694)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boisot, Jean-Baptiste 1638 births 1694 deaths French abbots French philanthropists Clergy from Besançon 17th-century French Roman Catholic priests French book and manuscript collectors Date of birth unknown 17th-century philanthropists