BIOGRAPHICAL

DICTIONARY;

CONTAINING

An Hiftorical and Critical ACCOUNT

OF THE

LIVES and WRITINGS

OF THE

Most Eminent Perfons

In every NATION;

Particularly the BRITISH and IRISH;

From the Earlieft Accounts of Time to the present Period.

WHEREIN

Their remarkable ACTIONS or SUFFERINGS, their VIRTUES, PARTS, and LEARNING, are accurately displayed; with a CATALOGUE of their LITERARY PRODUCTIONS.

VOL. IV.

LONDON:

Printed for T. OSBORNE, J. WHISTON and B. White, W. STRAHAN, T. PAYNE, W. OWEN, W. JOHNSTON, S. CROWDER, B. LAW, T. FIELD, T. DURHAM, J. ROBSON, R. GOADBY, and E. BAKER.

MDCCLXI.

2101.e.27

AN

Univerfal, Hiftorical, and Literary

DICTIONARY.

D

D.

ACIER (ANDREW) an eminent French critic and philologer, was born of proteftant parents at Caftres in Upper Languedoc, upon the 6th of April 1651, and had his education in the college there; but, when the direction of it was given, in the year 1664, to the jefuits alone, his father fent him to the university of Puyloufens, and afterwards to that of Saumur, that he might finifh his claffical ftudies under Tanneguy le Fevre, or Tanaguil Faber. This excellent mafter was fo taken with mr. Dacier's uncommon genius and inclination for learning, that he kept him alone in his house, after he had difmiffed the rest of his pupils; and here mr. Dacier conceived that affection for mr. Le Fevre's celebrated daughter, which ended at length in a marriage. Mr. Le Fevre dying on the 12th of September, 1672, mr. Dacier returned to his father; and after fome time went to Paris, in order to gain a settlement there to his advantage. After a journey or two he got recommended to the duke of Montaufier, governor to the dauphin, who put him in the lift of the commentators for the ufe of the dauphin, and engaged him in an edition of Pompeius Feftus. This he published in quarto at Paris in 1681, and it was again published in quarto at Amsterdam in 1699; which edition is preferable to that of Paris, because VOL. IV.

B

there

1

there are added to it the entire notes of Jofeph Scaliger, Fulvius Urfinus, and Antony Auguftinus, and the new fragments of Feftus. His Horace, with a French tranflation, and notes critical and historical, came out at Paris in ten volumes 12mo, in 1681, and has often been printed fince. The best edition of this work is that of Amfterdam, 1726, confifting of the fame number of volumes in the fame fize. Another edition was printed at Amfterdam in eight volumes 12mo, to which were added the tranflation and notes of father Sanadon, published at Paris in two volumes 4to, in the year 1728. The title runs thus: Oeuvres D'Horace, en Latin, traduites in Francois par m. Dacier et le p. Sanadon, avec les remarques de l'un et de l'autre. Mr. John Maffon made feveral animadverfions upon monfieur Dacier's notes on Horace, in his life of that poet, printed at Leyden in 1708; which occafioned mr. Dacier to publish "Nouveaux eclairciffemens fur les oeuvres d'Horace, &c. "that is, New explications upon the works of Horace, ❝ with an answer to the criticisms of mr. Maffon, a refugee "minister in England." He treats mr. Maffon's book with great contempt; and, fpeaking of verbal criticism, ftiles it

The laft effort of reflection and judgment," in which he will no doubt be thought by many to have been not a little biaffed in favour of his profeffion. Thefe Nouveaux eclairciffemens, &c. are to be found in Sanadon's edition of Dacier's Horace. The next fpecimen of his learning was in the edition he gave of " S. Anaftafii Sinaitae anagogicarum " contemplationum in Hexaemeron, lib. xii, &c. that is, "The twelfth book of the anagogical contemplations of "St. Anaftafius, monk of mount Sinai, upon the creation of "the world, now firft published, together with notes and a "Latin tranflation." This was published in quarto at London, 1682.

In the year 1683, mr. Dacier married madamoiselle Le Fevre; and in September, 1685, abjured with his lady the proteftant religion. We fhall fay more of this, and of their fettling at Paris, in our account of her. Mr. Dacier's marriage feems to have interrupted his literary pursuits confiderably; for we hear no more of him till the year 1691, and then he proceeded to oblige the world with new publications. In that year he published a French tranflation of "The moral re

flections of the emperor Marcus Antoninus, with notes," in two volumes 12mo. Madam Dacier had a hand in this work. In 1692, he published "La poetique d'Ariftotle, L &c.

&c. that is, Ariftotle's poetics, containing the moft exact "rules of judging of an heroic poem, and of theatrical wri"tings, as tragedy and comedy; tranflated into French, "with critical remarks upon the whole work." In 4to. This work was reprinted in Holland in 12mo; and fome have afferted it to have been mr. Dacier's mafterpiece. In 1693, he published a French tranflation, with notes, of "The Oedipus and Electra of Sophocles," in 12mo; but not with the fame fuccefs as the poetics juft mentioned. We have already mentioned fix publications of mr. Dacier: the reft fhall now follow in order; for the life of this learned man, like that of moft others, is little more than a history of his works. He published, 7. " Vies des hommes illuftres, "&c. that is, Plutarch's lives of illuftrious men, translated "into French, with notes." Tom. i. Paris, 1694, in 8vo. This effay, which contains only five lives, is the beginning of a work, which he afterwards finifhed. 8. "Les "ouvres d'Hippocrate, &c. that is, The works of Hippo

crates, tranflated into French, with notes, and compared "with the manufcripts in the king's library." Paris, 1697, two volumes in 12mo. The Journal des Savans speaks well of this verfion. 9. "Les ouvres de Platon, &c. that is, the works of Plato, tranflated into French, with notes, " and the life of that philofopher, with an account of the "principal doctrines of his philofophy." 1699, two volumes in 12mo. Thefe are only fome of Plato's pieces. ro. "La vie de Pythagore, &c. that is, The life of Pytha"goras, his fymbols, and golden verfes, The life of Hiero❝cles, and his commentary upon the golden verfes." 1706, two volumes in 12mo.

In the year 1695, mr. Dacier had fucceeded mr. Felibien in the academy of infcriptions, and mr. Francis de Harlay, archbishop of Paris, in the French academy. In 1701, a new regulation was made in the academy of infcriptions, by which every member was obliged to undertake fome useful work fuitable to his genius and courfe of ftudies: and, in conformity to this order, mr. Dacier had made this tranflation. of "The life of Pythagoras," &c. II. "Le manuel "d'Epictete, &c. that is, The manual of Epictetus, with "five treatises of Simplicius upon important fubjects, relating "to morality and religion, tranflated into French, with "notes." 1715, two volumes in 12mo. The authors of the Europe Savante of January, 1718, having criticised the fpecimen, which he had given of his tranflation of Plutarch's

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lives,