Desiderius+Erasmus

Desiderius Erasmus 1466-1536

‍‍‍‍‍Early Years
Desiderius Erasmus was born in October of the year 1466 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He was the illegitimate son of a priest, Roger Gerard, and Margaret, a physician's daughter. His parents enrolled him at a school in Deventer with the Bretheren of the Common Life from 1475 to 1484. However Erasmus's parents died in 1484, in which his appointed guardians sent his brother and him to a conservative school for three additional years. Erasmus's education consisted of classical Latin and a well-developed appreciation of Christianity.  ‍‍

‍‍‍‍‍Erasmus's Travels
In 1487, Erasmus entered the Augustinian monastery at Steyn. Erasmus was ordained a priest in 1488. Erasmus became the secretary of the bishop of Cambrai in 1493. Erasmus's salary was received for study in Paris, France, in 1495. From Paris, Erasmus was taken for a visit to England by a Parisian student in 1499. This visit to England became the turning point in Erasmus's life. Erasmus was introduced to English humanists studying Scripture and their working toward reform of the Catholic Church. This inspired Erasmus to study religion in the Greek language for his research. Erasmus then traveled to Italy in 1506. In Italy, Erasmus improved his Greek and created a relationship with Aldus Manutius's printing house in Venice. Erasmus eventually returned to England in 1509 with great disappointment in the Church's wars and its clergy's weaknesses. Erasmus became a professor at Cambridge from 1511 to 1514 although he was not officially released from monastic vows until 1517.