Cesare Cremonini (philosopher)
Encyclopedia
Cesare Cremonini, sometimes Cesare Cremonino (22 December 1550 – 19 July 1631), was an Italian
professor of natural philosophy
, working rationalism
(against revelation
) and Aristotelian
materialism
(against the dualist immortality of the soul
) inside scholasticism
. He signed his Latin
texts Cæsar Cremoninus (and its genitive form
Cæsaris Cremonini at the start of some titles), or Cæsar Cremonius.
Considered one of the greatest philosophers
in his time, patronized by Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara
, corresponding with kings and princes who had his portrait, paid twice the salary of Galileo Galilei
, he is now more remembered as an infamous side actor of the Galileo affair
, being one of the two scholars who refused to look through Galileo's telescope
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=OwOlRPbrZeQC&pg=PA162&lpg=PA162&dq=galileo+refused+%22to+look%22+telescope&source=bl&ots=Z0zW5-NJ73&sig=1kGqruIfBG8DMjHGgPh0EVP6DdM&hl=en&ei=yf1hSrrsK9WrjAf03r3xDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7. Galileo used him as the main prototype for the character Simplicio in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
.
in the then Papal States
. He was a professor of natural philosophy
for about 60 years:
He taught the doctrines of Aristotle
, especially as interpreted by Alexander of Aphrodisias
and Averroes
.
He was so popular in his time that most kings and princes had his portrait and corresponded with him, sometimes consulting him about private and public affairs. At Padua, his salary was twice that of Galileo. He was especially popular among the French intellectuals who called him "le Cremonin" (the Cremonin); even a remote writer such as Jean-Louis Guez de Balzac
mentioned him as "le grand Cremonin" (the great Cremonin) in his Lettres.
, mechanics
, and astronomy
there from 1592 to 1610).
When Galileo claimed he had discovered mountains on the Moon, Cremonini was one of the scholars who sternly refused to even check through the telescope, alleging that Aristotle had definitely proved that the Moon could only be a perfect sphere. Later, Galileo used Cremonini as the main prototype for the character Simplicio in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
.
But when Galileo was about to move, Cremonini warned him that moving from Venice-ruled Padua to Tuscany
would bring him under the jurisdiction of the Roman Inquisition
.
and continued by Jacopo Zabarella
(his predecessors in the chair), Cremonini too taught that reason alone cannot demonstrate the immortality of the soul - his blind adherence to Aristotle implying that he believed in the mortality of the soul. After a paper he wrote about the Jesuits, and public statements he made in favor of laic teachers, the Jesuits
in Venice accused him of materialism
, then relayed their grievances to Rome. He was prosecuted by the Inquisition for atheism
and the Averroist heresy
of "double truth", and ordered to refute his claims: as was his manner, Cremonini gently refused to retract himself, sheltering himself behind Aristotle's authority, and because Padua was then under the tolerant Venetian rule, he was kept out of reach of a full trial. (In 1611, the Inquisition would check their proceedings against Cremonini in search of ammunition against his friend Galileo.)
As for the accusations, and beyond Cremonini's teachings: indeed his personal motto was "Intus ut libet, foris ut moris est" (Latin for "In private think what you wish, in public behave as is the custom"), which was taken by humanists
as meaning that a scientific thinker could hold one set of opinions as a philosopher, and another set as a Christian
; it was also adopted by European Libertine
s (brought back to France by his student and confidant Gabriel Naudé
). After his death, Cremonini had his tombstone engraved with "Cæsar Cremoninus hic totus jacet" (Latin for "Here lies all of Cremonini"), implying that no soul survived.
His student Naudé (who had been his confidant for three months) qualified most of his Italian teachers as "Atheists" and especially Cremonini as a "déniaisé" ("one who has been wised up, unfoolish, devirginized", the Libertines' word for unbelievers); he added to his friends, translated, "The Cremonin, Professor of Philosophy in Padua, confessed to a few choice Friends of his that he believed neither in God, nor in Devil
, nor in the immortality of the soul: yet he was careful that his manservant was a good Catholic
, for fear he said, should he believe in nothing, that he may one morning cut my throat in my bed". Later, Pierre Bayle
pointed out that Cremonini did not believe in the immortality of the soul (in the "Crémonin" article of his Historical and Critical Dictionary). Gottfried Leibniz
, in his 1710 Theodicy, dealing with the Averroists, who "declared that man's soul is, according to philosophy, mortal, while they protested their acquiescence in Christian theology, which declares the soul's immortality", says "that very sect of the Averroists survived as a school. It is thought that Caesar Cremoninus, a philosopher famous in his time, was one of its mainstays". Pierre Larousse
, in his opinionated Grand dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle, stated Cremonini was not a Christian.
), more than 400 students were working with him. His previous students included, alphabetically:
He was buried in the Benedictine
monastery of St. Justina of Padua
(to which he also willed his possessions). His name has been given to several streets ("via Cesare Cremonini" in Cento, "via Cesare Cremonino" in Padua) and an institute ("Istituto Magistrale Cesare Cremonini" in Cento).
(Not included are poems and other personal texts.)
when inside a longer title.)
(Not included are poems and other personal texts.)
Philosophy
Cremonini and Galileo
Texts of Cremonini
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
professor of natural philosophy
Natural philosophy
Natural philosophy or the philosophy of nature , is a term applied to the study of nature and the physical universe that was dominant before the development of modern science...
, working rationalism
Rationalism
In epistemology and in its modern sense, rationalism is "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification" . In more technical terms, it is a method or a theory "in which the criterion of the truth is not sensory but intellectual and deductive"...
(against revelation
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing, through active or passive communication with a supernatural or a divine entity...
) and Aristotelian
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
materialism
Materialism
In philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
(against the dualist immortality of the soul
Dualism (philosophy of mind)
In philosophy of mind, dualism is a set of views about the relationship between mind and matter, which begins with the claim that mental phenomena are, in some respects, non-physical....
) inside scholasticism
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
. He signed his Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
texts Cæsar Cremoninus (and its genitive form
Genitive case
In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...
Cæsaris Cremonini at the start of some titles), or Cæsar Cremonius.
Considered one of the greatest philosophers
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
in his time, patronized by Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara
Alfonso II, Duke of Ferrara
Alfonso II d'Este was duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the house of Este.-Biography:...
, corresponding with kings and princes who had his portrait, paid twice the salary of Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei , was an Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher who played a major role in the Scientific Revolution. His achievements include improvements to the telescope and consequent astronomical observations and support for Copernicanism...
, he is now more remembered as an infamous side actor of the Galileo affair
Galileo affair
The Galileo affair was a sequence of events, beginning around 1610, during which Galileo Galilei came into conflict with the Aristotelian scientific view of the universe , over his support of Copernican astronomy....
, being one of the two scholars who refused to look through Galileo's telescope
Telescope
A telescope is an instrument that aids in the observation of remote objects by collecting electromagnetic radiation . The first known practical telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 1600s , using glass lenses...
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=OwOlRPbrZeQC&pg=PA162&lpg=PA162&dq=galileo+refused+%22to+look%22+telescope&source=bl&ots=Z0zW5-NJ73&sig=1kGqruIfBG8DMjHGgPh0EVP6DdM&hl=en&ei=yf1hSrrsK9WrjAf03r3xDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7. Galileo used him as the main prototype for the character Simplicio in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
The Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems was a 1632 Italian language book by Galileo Galilei comparing the Copernican system with the traditional Ptolemaic system. It was translated to Latin as Systema cosmicum in 1635 by Matthias Bernegger...
.
Biography
Cesare Cremonini was born in CentoCento
Cento is a city and comune in the province of Ferrara, part of the region Emilia-Romagna . In Italian "cento" means 100.-History:The name Cento is a reference to the centuriation of the Po Valley...
in the then Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
. He was a professor of natural philosophy
Natural philosophy
Natural philosophy or the philosophy of nature , is a term applied to the study of nature and the physical universe that was dominant before the development of modern science...
for about 60 years:
- From 1573 to 1590 at the University of FerraraUniversity of FerraraThe University of Ferrara is the main university of the city of Ferrara in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. In the years prior to the First World War the University of Ferrara, with more than 500 students, was the best attended of the free universities in Italy...
. Starting at a very young age and considered a great talent, he obtained the patronage of Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of FerraraAlfonso II, Duke of FerraraAlfonso II d'Este was duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597. He was a member of the house of Este.-Biography:...
(to whom he would dedicate his first major book in 1596). The jealousies caused by this protection helped him to eventually accept a position outside his native province. - From 1591 to 1631 (his death) at the University of PaduaUniversity of PaduaThe University of Padua is a premier Italian university located in the city of Padua, Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 as a school of law and was one of the most prominent universities in early modern Europe. It is among the earliest universities of the world and the second...
in PaduaPaduaPadua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
, then under Republic of VeniceRepublic of VeniceThe Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
rule (succeeding to Jacopo ZabarellaJacopo ZabarellaGiacomo Zabarella was an Italian Aristotelian philosopher and logician. He was accused of atheism for the notable chapter "De inventione æterni motoris" in his De rebus naturalibus libri XXX....
, d. 1589), in a chair of natural philosophy and a chair of medicine.
He taught the doctrines of Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
, especially as interpreted by Alexander of Aphrodisias
Alexander of Aphrodisias
Alexander of Aphrodisias was a Peripatetic philosopher and the most celebrated of the Ancient Greek commentators on the writings of Aristotle. He was a native of Aphrodisias in Caria, and lived and taught in Athens at the beginning of the 3rd century, where he held a position as head of the...
and Averroes
Averroes
' , better known just as Ibn Rushd , and in European literature as Averroes , was a Muslim polymath; a master of Aristotelian philosophy, Islamic philosophy, Islamic theology, Maliki law and jurisprudence, logic, psychology, politics, Arabic music theory, and the sciences of medicine, astronomy,...
.
He was so popular in his time that most kings and princes had his portrait and corresponded with him, sometimes consulting him about private and public affairs. At Padua, his salary was twice that of Galileo. He was especially popular among the French intellectuals who called him "le Cremonin" (the Cremonin); even a remote writer such as Jean-Louis Guez de Balzac
Jean-Louis Guez de Balzac
Jean-Louis Guez de Balzac was a French author, best known for his epistolary essays, which were widely circulated and read in his day. He was one of the founding members of Académie française.-Biography:...
mentioned him as "le grand Cremonin" (the great Cremonin) in his Lettres.
Cremonini and Galileo
At Padua, Cremonini was both a rival and a friend of his colleague Galileo (who taught geometryGeometry
Geometry arose as the field of knowledge dealing with spatial relationships. Geometry was one of the two fields of pre-modern mathematics, the other being the study of numbers ....
, mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
, and astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
there from 1592 to 1610).
When Galileo claimed he had discovered mountains on the Moon, Cremonini was one of the scholars who sternly refused to even check through the telescope, alleging that Aristotle had definitely proved that the Moon could only be a perfect sphere. Later, Galileo used Cremonini as the main prototype for the character Simplicio in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems
The Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems was a 1632 Italian language book by Galileo Galilei comparing the Copernican system with the traditional Ptolemaic system. It was translated to Latin as Systema cosmicum in 1635 by Matthias Bernegger...
.
But when Galileo was about to move, Cremonini warned him that moving from Venice-ruled Padua to Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
would bring him under the jurisdiction of the Roman Inquisition
Roman Inquisition
The Roman Inquisition was a system of tribunals developed by the Holy See during the second half of the 16th century, responsible for prosecuting individuals accused of a wide array of crimes related to heresy, including Protestantism, sorcery, immorality, blasphemy, Judaizing and witchcraft, as...
.
Cremonini and the Inquisition
Following up on the controversy opened in 1516 by Pietro PomponazziPietro Pomponazzi
Pietro Pomponazzi was an Italian philosopher. He is sometimes known by his Latin name, Petrus Pomponatius.-Biography:...
and continued by Jacopo Zabarella
Jacopo Zabarella
Giacomo Zabarella was an Italian Aristotelian philosopher and logician. He was accused of atheism for the notable chapter "De inventione æterni motoris" in his De rebus naturalibus libri XXX....
(his predecessors in the chair), Cremonini too taught that reason alone cannot demonstrate the immortality of the soul - his blind adherence to Aristotle implying that he believed in the mortality of the soul. After a paper he wrote about the Jesuits, and public statements he made in favor of laic teachers, the Jesuits
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
in Venice accused him of materialism
Materialism
In philosophy, the theory of materialism holds that the only thing that exists is matter; that all things are composed of material and all phenomena are the result of material interactions. In other words, matter is the only substance...
, then relayed their grievances to Rome. He was prosecuted by the Inquisition for atheism
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
and the Averroist heresy
Averroism
Averroism is the term applied to either of two philosophical trends among scholastics in the late 13th century: the Arab philosopher Averroës or Ibn Rushd's interpretations of Aristotle and his reconciliation of Aristotelianism with Islamic faith; and the application of these ideas in the Latin...
of "double truth", and ordered to refute his claims: as was his manner, Cremonini gently refused to retract himself, sheltering himself behind Aristotle's authority, and because Padua was then under the tolerant Venetian rule, he was kept out of reach of a full trial. (In 1611, the Inquisition would check their proceedings against Cremonini in search of ammunition against his friend Galileo.)
As for the accusations, and beyond Cremonini's teachings: indeed his personal motto was "Intus ut libet, foris ut moris est" (Latin for "In private think what you wish, in public behave as is the custom"), which was taken by humanists
Humanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
as meaning that a scientific thinker could hold one set of opinions as a philosopher, and another set as a Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
; it was also adopted by European Libertine
Libertine
A libertine is one devoid of most moral restraints, which are seen as unnecessary or undesirable, especially one who ignores or even spurns accepted morals and forms of behavior sanctified by the larger society. Libertines, also known as rakes, placed value on physical pleasures, meaning those...
s (brought back to France by his student and confidant Gabriel Naudé
Gabriel Naudé
Gabriel Naudé was a French librarian and scholar. He was a prolific writer who produced works on many subjects including politics, religion, history and the supernatural. An influential work on library science was the 1627 book Advice on Establishing a Library...
). After his death, Cremonini had his tombstone engraved with "Cæsar Cremoninus hic totus jacet" (Latin for "Here lies all of Cremonini"), implying that no soul survived.
His student Naudé (who had been his confidant for three months) qualified most of his Italian teachers as "Atheists" and especially Cremonini as a "déniaisé" ("one who has been wised up, unfoolish, devirginized", the Libertines' word for unbelievers); he added to his friends, translated, "The Cremonin, Professor of Philosophy in Padua, confessed to a few choice Friends of his that he believed neither in God, nor in Devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
, nor in the immortality of the soul: yet he was careful that his manservant was a good Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, for fear he said, should he believe in nothing, that he may one morning cut my throat in my bed". Later, Pierre Bayle
Pierre Bayle
Pierre Bayle was a French philosopher and writer best known for his seminal work the Historical and Critical Dictionary, published beginning in 1695....
pointed out that Cremonini did not believe in the immortality of the soul (in the "Crémonin" article of his Historical and Critical Dictionary). Gottfried Leibniz
Gottfried Leibniz
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was a German philosopher and mathematician. He wrote in different languages, primarily in Latin , French and German ....
, in his 1710 Theodicy, dealing with the Averroists, who "declared that man's soul is, according to philosophy, mortal, while they protested their acquiescence in Christian theology, which declares the soul's immortality", says "that very sect of the Averroists survived as a school. It is thought that Caesar Cremoninus, a philosopher famous in his time, was one of its mainstays". Pierre Larousse
Pierre Larousse
Pierre Athanase Larousse was a French grammarian, lexicographer and encyclopaedist. He published many of the outstanding educational and reference works of 19th-century France, including the 15 volume Grand Dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle.-Early life:Pierre Larousse was born in Toucy, where...
, in his opinionated Grand dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle, stated Cremonini was not a Christian.
Death and legacy
When he died in 1631 (during the Paduan outbreak of the Italian Plague of 1629-1631Italian Plague of 1629-1631
The Italian Plague of 1629–1631 was a series of outbreaks of bubonic plague which occurred from 1629 through 1631 in northern Italy. This epidemic, often referred to as Great Plague of Milan, claimed the lives of approximately 280,000 people, with the cities of the Lombardy and Veneto regions...
), more than 400 students were working with him. His previous students included, alphabetically:
- Theophilos Corydalleus, graduated 1613, a Greek philosopher, had a tremendous influence in the Greek-speaking world during the 17th and 18th centuries
- William HarveyWilliam HarveyWilliam Harvey was an English physician who was the first person to describe completely and in detail the systemic circulation and properties of blood being pumped to the body by the heart...
, graduated 1602, an English doctor who was the first to correctly describe the circulation of the blood - Joachim Jung, graduated 1619, a German mathematician and naturalist popularized by John RayJohn RayJohn Ray was an English naturalist, sometimes referred to as the father of English natural history. Until 1670, he wrote his name as John Wray. From then on, he used 'Ray', after "having ascertained that such had been the practice of his family before him".He published important works on botany,...
- Ioannis KottouniosIoannis KottouniosIoannis Kottounios, was an eminent Greek scholar who studied Philosophy, Theology and Medicine, taught Greek from 1617 and Philosophy from 1630 in Bologna, Italy becoming professor of philosophy in 1632 he also founded a college for unwealthy Greeks at Padua in 1653.- Biography :Ioannis...
, an eminent Greek scholar and his successor to the chair of philosophy at Padua - Giusto Lipsio, an Italian philosopher
- Gabriel NaudéGabriel NaudéGabriel Naudé was a French librarian and scholar. He was a prolific writer who produced works on many subjects including politics, religion, history and the supernatural. An influential work on library science was the 1627 book Advice on Establishing a Library...
, in 1625-27, a French scholar and Cardinal Mazarin's librarian - Guy PatinGuy PatinGuy Patin was a French doctor and man of letters.Guy Patin was headmaster of the School of Medicine in Paris and professor in the Collège de France starting in 1655...
, a French doctor, headmaster of the School of Medicine in Paris - Antonio RoccoAntonio RoccoAntonio Rocco was an Italian priest and philosophy teacher , and a writer. Ever since 1888 when he was identified as its anonymous author, he is best known for his satirical homosexual text, L'Alcibiade, fanciullo a scola, written in 1630 and published in 1652.The work was immediately suppressed,...
, an Italian philosophy teacher and libertine writer - Corfitz UlfeldtCorfitz Ulfeldt (1606-1664)Count Corfits Ulfeldt , Danish statesman, was the son of the chancellor Jacob Ulfeldt. After a careful education abroad, concluding with one year under Cesare Cremonini at Padua, he returned to Denmark in 1629 and quickly won the favor of King Christian IV...
, in 1628-29, a famous Danish statesman and traitor - Flemming Ulfeldt, also in 1628–29, a Danish statesman and military leader, younger brother of Corfitz
He was buried in the Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monastery of St. Justina of Padua
Justina of Padua
Saint Justina of Padua is a Christian saint who was said to have been martyred in 304 AD. Justina was said to have been a young woman who took private vows of chastity and was killed during the persecutions of Diocletian. She is a patron saint of Padua.Medieval histories described her as a...
(to which he also willed his possessions). His name has been given to several streets ("via Cesare Cremonini" in Cento, "via Cesare Cremonino" in Padua) and an institute ("Istituto Magistrale Cesare Cremonini" in Cento).
Concise bibliography
Below are his main books (many of them including separate treatises), listing only their most usual abridged titles:- 1596: Explanatio proœmii librorum Aristotelis De physico auditu
- 1605: De formis elementorum
- 1611: De Anima (student transcript of a Cremonini lecture)
- 1613: Disputatio de cœlo
- 1616: De quinta cœli substantia (second series of De cœlo)
- 1626: De calido innato (reprinted in 1634)
- 1627: De origine et principatu membrorum
- 163?: De semine (printed or reprinted in 1634)
- --- Posthumous:
- 1634: De calido innato et semine (expanding 1626 with 163?)
- 1644: De sensibus et facultate appetitiva
- 1663: Dialectica
(Not included are poems and other personal texts.)
Extended bibliography
Below are his main books (with usual short titles, original full titles, and indication of some variants or misspellings commonly found in literature). As was the practice of the time, many of them are made of opuscules, separate treatises grouped in a single binding. (Please note that Latin title spelling can vary depending on their grammatical position in a sentence, such as a "tractatus" becoming a "tractatum" in the accusative caseAccusative case
The accusative case of a noun is the grammatical case used to mark the direct object of a transitive verb. The same case is used in many languages for the objects of prepositions...
when inside a longer title.)
- 1596: Explanatio proœmii librorum Aristotelis De physico auditu [1+20+22+43+1 folios] (Explanatio proœmii librorum Aristotelis De physico auditu cum introductione ad naturalem Aristotelis philosophiam, continente tractatum de pædia, descriptionemque universæ naturalis Aristoteliæ philosophiæ, quibus adjuncta est præfatio in libros De physico auditu. Ad serenissimum principem Alphonsum II Estensem Ferrariæ ducem augustissimum) also ("Explanatio proœmii librorum Aristotelis De physico auditu, et in eosdem Præfatio, una cum Tractatu de Pædia, seu, Introductione ad philosophiam naturalem Aristotelis.") (ed. Melchiorre Novello as "Melchiorem Novellum") - Padua: Novellum
- "Tractatus de pædia" alias "De pædia Aristotelis" or sometimes "De pœdia Aristotelis" (also as "Descriptio universæ naturalis Aristoteliæ philosophiæ", or erroneously "Diatyposis universæ naturalis aristotelicæ philosophiæ")
- "Introductio ad naturalem Aristotelis philosophiam" (sometimes "Introductio ad naturalem Aristotelis philosophiam")
- "Explanatio proœmii librorum Aristotelis De physico auditu" (sometimes "Explanatio proœmii librorum De physico auditu")
- 1605: De formis elementorum (Disputatio De formis quatuor corporum simplicium quæ vocantur elementa) - Venice
- 1611: De Anima (De Anima lectiones 31, opiniones antiquorum de anima lect. 17) - student transcript of a Cremonini lecture
- 1613: Disputatio de cœlo (Disputatio de cœlo : in tres partes divisa, de natura cœli, de motu cœli, de motoribus cœli abstractis. Adjecta est Apologia dictorum Aristotelis, de via lactea, et de facie in orbe lunæ) - Venice: Thomam Balionum
- "De cœlo"
- "De natura cœli"
- "De motu cœli"
- "De motoribus cœli abstractis"
- "De via lactea"
- "De facie in orbe lunæ"
- "De cœlo"
- 1616: De quinta cœli substantia (Apologia dictorum Aristotelis, de quinta cœli substantia adversus Xenarcum, Joannem Grammaticum, et alios) - Venice: Meiettum (second series of De cœlo)
- 1626: De calido innato (Apologia dictorum Aristotelis De calido innato adversus Galenum) - Venice: Deuchiniana (reprinted in 1634)
- 1627: De origine et principatu membrorum (Apologia dictorum Aristotelis De origine et Principatu membrorum adversus Galenum) - Venice: Hieronymum Piutum
- "De origine"
- "De principatu membrorum"
- 163?: De semine (Expositio in digressionem Averrhois de semine contra Galenum pro Aristotele) - (printed or reprinted in 1634)
- --- Posthumous:
- 1634: De calido innato et semine (Tractatus de calido innato, et semine, pro Aristotele adversus Galenum) - Leiden: Elzevir (Lugduni-Batavorum) (expanding 1626 with 163?)
- "De calido innato"
- "De semine" (Apologia dictorum Aristotelis De Semine)
- 1644: De sensibus et facultate appetitiva (Tractatus tres : primus est de sensibus externis, secundus de sensibus internis, tertius de facultate appetitiva. Opuscula haec revidit Troylus Lancetta auctoris discipulus, et adnotatiotes confecit in margine) also (Tractatus III : de sensibus externis, de sensibus internis, de facultate appetitiva) (ed. Troilo Lancetta, as "Troilus Lancetta" or "Troilo de Lancettis"), Venice: Guerilios
- "De sensibus externis"
- "De sensibus internis"
- "De facultate appetitiva"
- 1663: Dialectica (Dialectica, Logica sive dialectica) (ed. Troilo Lancetta, as "Troilus Lancetta" or "Troilo de Lancettis") (sometimes "Dialecticum opus posthumum") - Venice: Guerilios
(Not included are poems and other personal texts.)
Sources
Dictionaries and encyclopedias- Pierre BaylePierre BaylePierre Bayle was a French philosopher and writer best known for his seminal work the Historical and Critical Dictionary, published beginning in 1695....
: Dictionaire historique et critique, volume 2, 1697, reprinted Amsterdam: 1740, pp. 224–225, article "Cremonin, César" (in French) online - John GortonJohn Gorton (writer)John Gorton was an English writer, known as a compiler of reference works.His works include:* a translation of Voltaire's Dictionnaire Philosophique, 1824;...
: A General Biographical Dictionary, London: Henry G. Bohn, 1828, new edition 1851, page 146, article "Cremonini, Cæsar" online - Adolphe Franck: Dictionnaire des sciences philosophiques, volume 1, Paris: Hachette, 1844, pp. 598–599, article "Crémonini, César" (in French) online
- Ferdinand HoeferFerdinand HoeferJean Chrétien Ferdinand Hoefer was a German-French physician and lexicographer. He is now known for his many works on the history of science.-Selected works:...
: Nouvelle biographie générale, volume XII, Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1855, second edition 1857, pp. 416–419, article "Cremonini, César" (in French) online - Pierre LaroussePierre LaroussePierre Athanase Larousse was a French grammarian, lexicographer and encyclopaedist. He published many of the outstanding educational and reference works of 19th-century France, including the 15 volume Grand Dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle.-Early life:Pierre Larousse was born in Toucy, where...
: Grand dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle, volume 5, Paris: 1869, page 489, article "Crémonini, César" (in French) online (PDF or TIFF plugin required) - Marie-Nicolas Bouillet, Alexis Chassang (ed.): Dictionnaire universel d'histoire et de géographie, 26th edition, Paris: Hachette, 1878, page 474, article "Cremonini, César" (in French) online (PDF or TIFF plugin required)
- Werner Ziegenfuss: Philosophen-lexikon: Handwörterbuch der Philosophie nach Personen, Walter de Gruyter, 1950, ISBN 3110028964, page 208, article "Cremoninus, Caesar (Cesare Cremonini)"
- Various: Encyclopædia Universalis, CD-ROM edition: 1996, article "Cremonini, C." (in French)
- Herbert Jaumann: Handbuch Gelehrtenkultur der Frühen Neuzeit, Walter de Gruyter, 2004, ISBN 3110160692, page 203, article "Cremonini, Cesare"
- Filosofico.net: Indice alfabetico dei dilosofi, article "Cesare Cremonino" (in Italian) online : picture and profile
- Philosophy Institute at the University of Düsseldorf: Philosophengalerie, article "Caesar Cremoninus (Cesare Cremonini)" (in German) online : another picture, bibliography, literature
Philosophy
- Léopold Mabilleau: Étude historique sur la philosophie de la Renaissance en Italie, Paris: Hachette, 1881
- J.-Roger Charbonnel: La pensée italienne au XVIe siècle et le courant libertin, Paris: Champion, 1919
- David Wootton: "Unbelief in Early Modern Europe", History Workshop Journal, No. 20, 1985, pages 83–101 : Averroes, Pomponazzi, Cremonini
Cremonini and Galileo
- Evan R. Soulé, Jr.: "The Energy Machine of Joseph Newman", Discover Magazine, May 1987, online version : telescope incident account
- Thomas Lessl: "The Galileo Legend", New Oxford Review, June 2000, pp. 27–33, online at CatholicEducation.org : telescope incident note
- Paul Newall: "The Galileo Affair", 2005, online at Galilean-Library.org : telescope incident note (with typo "Cremoni")
- W.R. Laird: "Venetischer Aristotelismus im Ende der aristotelischen Welt: Aspekte der Welt und des Denkens des Cesare Cremonini (1550-1631)(Review)" in Renaissance Quarterly, 1999, online excerpt at Amazon.com or excerpt at FindArticles.com
- Stephen Mason: "Galileo's Scientific Discoveries, Cosmological Confrontations, and the Aftermath", in History of science, volume 40, December 2002, pp. 382–383 (article pp. 6–7), PDF version online : salary, advices to Galileo
- Galileo Galilei, Andrea Frova, Mariapiera Marenzana: Thus Spoke Galileo, Oxford University Press, 2006 (translated from a 1998 book), ISBN 0198566255, page 9 : Inquisition
External links
- Cesare Cremonino site (in Italian) including detailed biography, bibliography, literature.
- Heinrich C. Kuhn: Cesare Cremonini: volti e maschere di un filosofo scomodo per tre secoli e mezzo (in Italian) 1999 conference about "the masks of Cremonini: Blind Man, Libertine Atheist, Rational Rigorist, and more"
Texts of Cremonini
- Cæsar Cremoninus - Disputatio de cœlo (1613), online scans (Javascript required)