FAREL, GUILLAUME (1489-1565), French reformer, was born of a noble family near Gap, Dauphine. He studied in Paris under Jacobus Faber (Stapulensis), on whose recommen dation he was appointed professor in the college of Cardinal Lemoine. In 1521, on the invitation of Bishop Briconnet, he went to Meaux, and took part in efforts of reform within the Roman communion. The persecuting measures of 1523, from which Faber found a refuge at Meaux, determined Farel to leave France. Oecolampadius welcomed him to Basel, where in 1524 he put forth thirteen theses sharply antagonizing Roman doctrine, and defended them with so much heat that Erasmus joined in de manding his expulsion from the city. He thought of going to Wit tenberg, but his first halt was at Strassburg, where, Bucer and Capito received him kindly. At the call of Duke Ulrich of Wurttemberg he went as preacher to Montbeliard, but was forced to leave early in 1525.
Retracing his steps to Strassburg and Basel, at the end of 1526 he obtained a preacher's post at Aigle, then a dependency of Bern, and, with reference to his protection by that city, adopted the pseudonym Ursinus. He obtained in 1528 a licence from the authorities to preach anywhere within the canton of Bern, but extended his labours to the cantons of Neuchatel and Vaud, in Oct. 153o breaking into the church of Neuchatel with an iconoclastic mob. In 1532 he visited the Waldenses and on the return journey halted at Geneva, then at a crisis of political and religious strife. On June 3o, 1532, the Council of Two Hundred had ordained that in every church and cloister of the city "the pure Gospel" should be preached; against this order the bishop's vicar led the opposition. Reaching Geneva in Oct. 1532, Farel at once began to preach at his lodging, and soon attracted crowds. Summoned before the bishop's vicar, he was violently thrust from the court and bidden to leave the city within three hours. He es caped with difficulty to Orbe by boat. Through the intervention of the government of Bern, liberty of worship was granted on March 28, 1533 to the Reformation party in Geneva. Farel, re turning, achieved in a couple of years a complete supremacy for his followers. On New Year's Day 1534 the bishop interdicted all preaching unauthorized by himself, and ordered the burning of all Protestant Bibles. This was the signal for public disputa tions in which Farel took the leading part on the Reformation side, with the result that by decree of Aug. the mass was suppressed and the reformed religion established. Calvin, on his way to Basel for a life of study, touched at Geneva, and by the importunity of Farel was there detained to become the leader of the Genevan Reformation. The severity of the disciplinary measures which followed procured a reaction under which Farel and Calvin were banished the city in 1538. Farel was called to Neuchatel in July 1538, but his position there was made untenable, though he remained at his post during a visitation of the plague. When (1541) Calvin was recalled to Geneva, Farel also returned; but in 1542 he went to Metz to support the Reformation there. In 1544 he returned to Neuchatel. No one was more frequently and confidentially consulted by Calvin. When the trial of Serve tus was in progress (1553), Calvin was anxious for Farel's pres ence, but he did not arrive till sentence had been passed. He ac companied Servetus to the stake, vainly urging him to a recanta tion at the last moment. Calvin's death, in 1564, affected Farel deeply. He died at Metz on Sept. 13, 1565.
See C. Ancillon, Vie de G. Farel (1691) ; the article in Bayle; M. Kirchhofer, Das Leben W. Farels (1831-1833) ; Ch. Schmidt, Etudes sur Farel (1834) ; F. Bevan, W. Farel (1893) ; J. J. Herzog, in Herzog Hauck's Realencyklopadie (1898) .