Wilhelm Lamormaini

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Wilhelm Lamormaini (born December 29, 1570 in La Moire Mannie (in today's Belgium ), † February 22, 1648 in Vienna ) was a Jesuit priest . He was a university teacher in Graz . As a confessor he exercised considerable influence on Emperor Ferdinand II ; At times he was so influential that he was considered the real shaper of politics.

Wilhelm Lamormaini

Life

Lamormaini was the son of a farmer; he received his first lessons from the village pastor. He attended the Jesuit college in Trier . At the expense of a relative, the Spanish ambassador Don Guillen de San Clemente took him to Prague , where Lamormaini was studying. He completed his studies with a doctorate in philosophy. In 1590 he entered the Jesuit order in Brno as a novice . Then he studied theology in Vienna and was in 1596 in Bratislava for ordained priests . After that he was a teacher at schools in Hungary for several years . He then taught philosophy from 1598 to 1604 at the University of Graz , run by Jesuits ; from 1600 he was a professor there. After taking solemn vows, he switched to theology in 1606 and became rector of the university in 1613 . He then went to Rome and in 1622/23 again moved to the Jesuit College in Vienna as rector. From 1624 he was confessor of Ferdinand II, who already knew him well from his time in Graz. Between 1639 and 1643 he was rector of the Jesuit college in Vienna. From 1643 he was superior of the Austrian order province.

Lamormaini is of historical importance because of its great influence on the emperor. He took a strictly counter-Reformation course . He achieved the establishment or reactivation of Jesuit colleges. Some universities, such as Vienna or Prague, are said to have been placed under the direction of the Jesuits thanks to his relationship with the emperor. When the imperial cause seemed victorious thanks to Wallenstein's victories in the Thirty Years' War , he encouraged the emperor to use his power to ruthlessly restore Catholicism. One consequence was the Edict of Restitution of 1629. It soon became apparent that this uncompromising course was a mistake because even the Catholic estates turned against the emperor. Nevertheless, Lamormaini held on to his position. He pleaded for an alliance of the Catholic states against the Protestants. He tried in vain to prevent Ferdinand from intervening in the War of the Mantuan Succession between Spain and France. The Catholic alliance idea also played a role in his advice to the emperor during the Regensburg Electoral Congress . He advocated giving in to Bavarian and French wishes. This may also have contributed to Ferdinand Wallenstein's dismissal and backtracking in Mantua. Lamormaini turned in vain against the negotiations with Saxony, which finally led to the Peace of Prague in 1635 . At that time, his influence had already waned significantly. After the emperor's death in 1637, he no longer played a role at court. - Father Lamormaini is said to have rejected the cardinal dignity .

literature

personal data
SURNAME Lamormaini, Wilhelm
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Jesuit
DATE OF BIRTH December 29, 1570
PLACE OF BIRTH La Moire Mannie
DATE OF DEATH February 22, 1648
Place of death Vienna