MICHELET, nuYshIM, JULES ( 1798-1874 ) . The greatest French historian of the Romantic School, born in Paris. August 21, 1798, the son of a printer. He studied literature under Ville main (q.v.). and at twenty-three became profes sor of history in the College Rollin. lie delivered lectures at the ancient College Sainte-Barbe and the Ecole Normale, and, after the Liberal tri umph in 1830, received an appointment at the Record Office, was made assistant of Gnizot at the and tutor of the Princess Cl6men tine. In 1838 he was made Academician and professo• in the College de France, where he presently became involved in a bitter controversy with the Jesuits, the popular echoes of which may be felt in Sue's (q.v.) famous novel Le juif errant. In 1851 he refused the oath of allegiance to Napoleon. lost his offices, and lived mainly in Brittany and en the Riviera. giving himself wholly to literature, chiefly poetically romantic impressions of nature: L'oiscau (1856) ; L'in srete (1857) ; La mei- (1861) ; La montagne ; of society, L'amour (185S) : La femme (18601; La sorc•idrc (1862); La bible dc l'hunta ?lite (1864) ; and Nos fils (1869). From this imaginative and sociologic work he returned in his last years to history. adding three volumes (1872-75) to the eighteen (1833-67) of his His toirc de France, and bringing the narrative to Waterloo. Besides this monumental work, he had contributed to history a l'reeis d'histoir•e moderne (1828) : Introduction a Phistoirc icrsclle (1831): Origines du droit francais (1837) : Le proces des templiers (1841-51) ; 31(' ?noires de Luther (1845) ; and to religious and political controversy. Les •Ir.suite.s (in collabora
tion with Edgar Quinet. 1843) ; Da pretre ct de la famine (1845) ; pruple (1846). teristics of all Michelet's work are democratic enthusiasm. hatred of priests, sympathy for the oppressed, and a picturesque imagination that transformed vast learning into poetry and history into intuition. He is seldom an objective observer and rarely a dispassionate judge. Nichelet's style, like his history, lacks con tinuity, it is striking rather than flowing, proceeds by leaps and bounds, appeals by rhythm as well as thought to emotion rather than reason. Micholet died at llyeres, February 5. 1874. An edition of Michclet's Works in 40 volumes (1895 et seq.) is nearly completed. Besides the auto biographical Ma jeuncsse (Paris, I8St) and Mon journal (ib., 1888) , consult for his life: Simon (ib., 1886), Corr6ard (ib., 1886), Monod (ib., 1897), Brunhes (ib., 1898), and Madame Quinet Winquante arts d'amitie, ib., 19001; for criti cism, XIXe sieele (ib., 1891) ; Thine, Essais (ib.. 1855-56) ; and Quarterly Review (London, 1901).