Charles Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre

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Charles Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre

Charles Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre , known as Abbé de Saint-Pierre (born February 18, 1658 in Saint-Pierre-Église , † April 29, 1743 in Paris ) is one of the most influential enlighteners and was a French clergyman, social philosopher and Publicist. His goal was eternal peace in Europe.

Life

The parents of Abbé de Saint-Pierre were Charles Castel, Marquis de Saint Pierre († 1676) and Madeleine Marie Gigault de Bellefonds (approx. 1625–1664). He had other siblings, such as François Antoine Castel († 1709), Françoise Madeleine Castel, Bon Thomas Castel, Marquis de Saint Pierre (approx. 1645–1712), Louis Hyacinthe Castel de Saint-Pierre, Comte de Saint Pierre (1649– 1748), Bernardin Castel († 1701), Marie Thérèse Castel (* 1658) and Suzanne Laurence Castel. His mother dies early and he grows up with his aunt in Rouen. His first school instruction received from the Jesuits . When his father also died in 1676, he went to Caen to study theology, but was more interested in physics and mathematics. In 1680 he moves to Paris.

Like many other French clergymen of his time, he called himself Abbé without exercising the profession of priest. Although he was of a rather fragile nature, he reached old age.

P. 6 from the Projet pour rendre la paix perpétuelle en Europe par l'abbé Castel de Saint-Pierre (1712) with the first proposal for a European Union

In the years 1712/17 he developed the plan for an eternal peace in Europe ("Projet pour rendre la paix perpétuelle en Europe"). As a member of the Académie française , Charles-Irénée Castel sparked a dispute between traditionalists and reformers in 1718, which resulted in his expulsion from the academy. As a representative of early enlightenment he dealt with a. with the question of whether the domestic contract model could also be transferred to the intergovernmental level. He believed in man's ability to perfect himself, which, however, required political and social reforms and new institutions. A good life can only be achieved if prejudice, ignorance and superstition are overcome. He was one of the first to suggest preventing wars through a European confederation.

Contrary to a myth that has been widespread for a long time, Saint-Pierre was not involved as a negotiator in the making of the Peace of Utrecht (1712-13), which ended the War of the Spanish Succession . He developed his ideas for the project of a “universal peace between nations” as early as 1708, but did not publish it in various versions until 1712. This work later made him known in the European scholarly world and influenced Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant by name . It was not until the century of the world wars that his ideas were implemented with the creation of international organizations such as the EU and the UN.

In 1718 he published the "Polysynody or the majority of the councils". In it he openly criticized the policy of the late Louis XIV and was subsequently expelled from the French Academy. In the literary salons of Paris, however, he was still a welcome guest and the sister-in-law of the late king and mother of the now regent, Liselotte von der Pfalz , used him as a confessor.

In the last two decades of his life, he maintained close relationships with Cardinal Fleury and the future Minister of War d'Argenson, two influential figures at the court of Versailles . He also corresponded with numerous figures in French intellectual life, including: a. with Voltaire . He concluded each of his letters with the slogan: Le paradis aux bienfaisants (the paradise for those who do good / benefactors)!

Some of his ideas are still considered contradicting today. He wanted to restrict the absolutist monarchy by setting up an international court of arbitration without explicitly calling it into question. On the other hand, the suggestion "to establish a permanent, eternal alliance between all Christian rulers for the purpose of maintaining an uninterrupted peace in Europe" is far-sighted. Its institutional design included a permanent Federal Council with 24 state members. Each state should remain autonomous with the exception of inter-state dispute settlement, foreign, customs and military policy. A change should only be possible with the consent of all members.

The idea of ​​a right to intervene in the sovereignty of a state also goes back to him.

Rousseau and later also Kant agreed with Abbé de Saint-Pierre that the “overcoming of absolutism” and the “establishment of a republican constitution” were necessary conditions for an international legal and peace order. However, the time was not yet ripe for implementing these ideas.

Together with Pierre-Joseph Alary (1689-1770), he founded the Club de l'Entresol in 1724 , an open discussion group based on the English model that existed until 1731.

Works

Originals

Translations

  • Castel de Saint-Pierre. The treatise on everlasting peace (1713) . Trans. V. Friedrich v. Opole-Bronikowski. Series: “Klassiker der Politik”, Vol. 4. Berlin: Hobbing, 1922. Link to the online edition (DNB, 2015): http://d-nb.info/1074162676 .

literature

Web links

Wikisource: Charles-Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre  - Sources and full texts (French)
Wikisource: Charles Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre  - Sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Family genealogy
  2. ↑ DIE ZEIT issue 50/12 page 23
  3. ↑ Cf. Rousseau's summary of the treatise: Extrait du "Project de paix perpétuelle" de Monsieur l'Abbé de Saint-Pierre (written in 1756, published in 1761); u. see. His critical appreciation: Jugement sur le "Project de paix perpétuelle" de Monsieur l'Abbé de Saint-Pierre (written 1756, published 1782).
  4. ^ Letters from Liselotte von der Pfalz , ed. v. Helmuth Kiesel, Insel Verlag, Frankfurt / M., 1981, p. 222, letter of July 9, 1719 to her half-sister Luise.
personal data
SURNAME Castel de Saint-Pierre, Charles Irénée
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Abbé de Saint-Pierre
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French clergyman, publicist, philosopher and writer
DATE OF BIRTH February 18, 1658
PLACE OF BIRTH Saint-Pierre-Église
DATE OF DEATH April 29, 1743
Place of death Paris