Pierre Du Moulin ( Latinized as Petrus Molinaeus; 16 October 1568 – 10 March 1658) was a
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
minister in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
who also resided in England for some years.
Life
Born in Buhy in 1568, he was the son of Joachim Du Moulin, a Protestant minister in the
Orléans
Orléans (,"Orleans" (US) and Academy of Sedan and subsequently trained for the ministry in London and Cambridge. In 1592 he moved to the
University of Leiden
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange as a Protestant institution, it holds the distinction of being the oldest university in the Neth ...
where he taught for several years. In 1598 he returned to France and became a minister of the
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
church in Paris and Charenton. Du Moulin returned to England in 1615 at the invitation of King James I.; online ed., Oct 2008. Through the King he was made a D.D. at Cambridge and was appointed a
prebendary
A prebendary is a member of the Catholic Church, Catholic or Anglicanism , Anglican clergy, a form of canon (priest) , canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in part ...
at
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral is the cathedral of the archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in Canterbury, Kent, it is one of the oldest Christianity, Ch ...
in 1615 (Stall IV). In 1621 his situation in France became dangerous and he moved back to Sedan, where he taught at the academy. In 1624 he returned to England, where he obtained an ecclesiastical
sinecure
A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is a position with a salary or otherwise generating income that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval church, ...
from King James. He returned to Sedan in 1625 and died there in 1658.
Works
He was a prolific author, penning a critique of the
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
Mass based on the Bible, ''Anatomie de la Messe'', and a defense of the French Reformed Confession of Faith against its
Jesuit
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
detractors, ''Bouclier de la Foi''. An English translation of his was published posthumously in 1674 by his son Peter Du Moulin.
In September, 1610, the biting satire ''Anti-Coton, in which it is proved that the Jesuits are guilty of parricide against Henri IV'' was followed by many pamphlets for and against the Jesuits. The Anti-Coton pamphlet attacked the Jesuits, and especially Father
Pierre Coton
Pierre Coton (7 March 1564, at Néronde in Forez – 19 March 1626, at Paris) was a French Jesuit and royal confessor.
Life
Coton studied law at Paris and Bourges, entered the Society of Jesus at the age of twenty-five, and was sent to Milan to ...
, the confessor of Henry IV, of whose murder the Jesuits had been accused by their enemies. Daurignac says (Hist. Soc. Jesus, vol. i., p. 295) that this pamphlet was attributed to Pierre Du Moulin.