Desiderius Erasmus

(1466-1536)

Dutch humanist (c.1469-1536)

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Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus; 28 October 1466 – 12 July 1536) was a Dutch philosopher and Catholic theologian who is considered one of the greatest scholars of the northern Renaissance. As a Catholic priest, he was an important figure in classical scholarship who wrote in a pure Latin style. Among humanists he was given the sobriquet "Prince of the Humanists", and has been called "the crowning glory of the Christian humanists". Using humanist techniques for working on texts, he prepared important new Latin and Greek editions of the New Testament, which raised questions that would be influential in the Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation. He also wrote On Free Will, In Praise of Folly, Handbook of a Christian Knight, On Civility in Children, Copia: Foundations of the Abundant Style and many other works.

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Born	28 October 1466 Rotterdam or Gouda, Burgundian Netherlands in the Holy Roman Empire
Died	1536 (aged 69) Basel, Old Swiss Confederacy in the Holy Roman Empire
Zodiac	Scorpio
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