Bossuet and His Contemporaries

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1877 Excerpt: ... CHAPTER X. BOSSUET'S LAST DAYS. Bossuet Appointed Conseiller D'etat--Premier Aumonier To The Duchesse Debourgogne--Goes To Saint-germain For The Assembly Of Clergy--Jansenism, Morale ReLachee--The Abbe Bossuet--Probabilism--Quesnel--The Probleme Ecclesiastique--Efforts At Obtaining The Unity Of Christendom--Correspondence With Leibnitz And Molanus--Version De Trevoux--Quarrel With The Chancellor De Pontchastrain--Cas De ConScience--Beginning Of Bossuet's Last Illness--His Activity--Hospitality--The Abbe Bossuet's Urgent Endeavours To Succeed His Uncle--Bossuet's ApplicaTion To Louis XIV. Not Accepted--Last Move To Paris--Final Illness And Death--Burial--Bossuet's Remains Taken Up In 1854, And Verified--His Successor De Blssy. THE last few years of Bossuet's long and busy life were not destined to be inactive. During the busy turmoil of the Quietist controversy he had proofs of the royal favour as strong as his adversary of the reverse. On June 29, 1697 the Bishop of Meaux was appointed Conseiller d'Etat, and the following October he was further appointed Premier Aumdnier to the Duchesse de Bourgogne. This latter post he desired, and even asked for, as he himself records in a letter to de la Broue, Bishop of Mirepoix. Perhaps he thought to establish a counter influence which might prevent Fenelon's return to the Court of his former pupil, who to the end loved the Archbishop of Cambrai devotedly. A point of etiquette arose when the household of the new little Duchesse took their oaths--the Marquis de Dangeau, Chevalier d'honneur, pressing his right to precedence, whereas Bossuet claimed it as his own to take the oaths first, citing the fact of his having done so already when appointed to the same office about the late Dauphiness. Louis XIV. decided that the p...