Pius Bonifacius Gams (23 January 1816, Mittelbuch,

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg ( ) was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Electorate of Württemberg, which existed from 1803 to 1806. Geogr ...

– 11 May 1892,

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

) was a German

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

ecclesiastical historian.

Life

His classical studies made at

Biberach an der Riss Biberach may refer to: *Biberach an der Riß, a town in Upper Swabia, Germany *Biberach (district), which has Biberach an der Riß as its capital * Biberach, Baden, a municipality in the ''Ortenaukreis'', Germany *Biberach is a part of Roggenburg, ...

and

Rottweil Rottweil (; Alemannic: ''Rautweil'') is a town in southwest Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Rottweil was a free imperial city for nearly 600 years. Located between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alps, Rottweil has over 25,000 ...

(1826–1834), he studied philosophy and theology at

Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...

(1834–38), entered the seminary of

Rottenburg am Neckar Rottenburg am Neckar (; until 10 July 1964 only ''Rottenburg''; Swabian: ''Raodaburg'') is a medium-sized town in the administrative district (''Landkreis'') of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies about 50 kilometres (31 miles) s ...

in 1838, and was ordained priest on 11 September 1839. He filled various posts as tutor, vicar, parish priest, professor until 1 May 1847, when he was appointed chairs of philosophy and general history by the theological faculty of

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

. He entered the Abbey of St. Boniface at Munich, which belonged to the Bavarian congregation of the Order of St. Benedict, and pronounced the monastic vows, 5 October 1856, adding the name of Pius to that of Boniface. Gams filled several monastic offices, being successively master of novices, sub-prior, and prior.

Work

He is best known for his ''Kirchengeschichte von Spanien'', 3 vols. (Ratisbon, 1862–1879), and his ''Series episcoporum Eccelesiae catholicae quotquot innotuerunt a beato Petro apostolo'' etc. (Ratisbon, 1873–86, with two supplements). The ''Kirchengeschichte von Spanien'' is a methodical work, critical, also, to a certain extent, in dealing with the earliest period of Spanish ecclesiastical history, though the author rarely abandons unreliable sources. The ''Series episcoporum'' is a collection of the episcopal lists of all ancient and modern sees. Gaps are frequent in the lists of ancient sees, especially those of the Eastern Church. Gams ignored a number of dissertations which would have rectified, on a multitude of points, his uncertain chronology. In 1850 Gams founded with his colleagues Johann Baptist Alzog, F. W. Koch, Mattes, and G.J. Muller a ''Theologische Monatschrift'' which lasted two years (1850–1851), and in which he published a number of essays.

Works

*; 3 vols. (Innsbruck, 1854–1858) * (Tübingen, 1853) *, etc. (Mainz, 1855) *, 3 vols, in five parts (Ratisbon 1862-79) * in , LVI, 134 sq., 208 sg, 311 sq., 418 sq., *, ibid, LVI, 67 sq * (Ratisbon, 1873) **Supp. I: (Munich, 1879) **Supp. II: (Ratisbon, 1886) * (Ratisbon, 1867).

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gams, Pius Bonifacius 1816 births 1892 deaths People from Ochsenhausen People from the Kingdom of Württemberg German Benedictines 19th-century German historians 19th-century German male writers German male non-fiction writers 19th-century German Roman Catholic priests