François-Désiré Mathieu

His Eminence François-Désiré Mathieu
Archbishop Emeritus of Toulouse
Mathieu as depicted in a 1908 portrait.
Church	Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese	Toulouse
See	Toulouse
Appointed	25 June 1896
Term ended	27 November 1899
Predecessor	Florian-Jules-Félix Desprez
Successor	Jean-Augustin Germain
Other post(s)	Cardinal-Priest of Santa Sabina (1899-1908)
Orders
Ordination	30 May 1863
Consecration	20 March 1893 by Guillaume-René Meignan
Created cardinal	19 June 1899 by Pope Leo XIII
Rank	Cardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born	François-Désiré Mathieu 27 May 1839 Einville-au-Jard, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Kingdom of the French
Died	26 October 1908(1908-10-26) (aged 69) London, England, United Kingdom
Parents	François Mathieu Felicité George
Previous post(s)	Bishop of Angers (1893-96) Camerlengo of the College of Cardinals (1905-06)
Motto	Obesse nemini prodesse omnibus

François-Désiré Mathieu (27 May 1839, Einville-au-Jard, Meurthe-et-Moselle – 26 October 1908, London) was a French Bishop and Cardinal.

Biography

He made his studies in the diocesan school and the seminary of the Diocese of Nancy, and was ordained priest in 1863. He was engaged successively as professor in the school (petit séminaire) of Pont-à-Mousson, chaplain to the Dominicanesses at Nancy (1879), and parish priest of Saint-Martin at Pont-à-Mousson (1890). Meanwhile, he had won the Degree of Doctor of Letters with a Latin and a French thesis, the latter being honoured with a prize from the Académie française for two years.

On 3 January 1893, he was nominated to the Bishopric of Angers, was preconized on 19 January, and consecrated on 20 March. He succeeded Charles Émile Freppel, one of the most remarkable bishops of his time, and set himself to maintain all his predecessor's good works. To these he added the work of facilitating the education of poor children destined for the priesthood. He inaugurated the same enterprise in the Diocese of Toulouse, to which he was transferred three years later (30 May 1896) by a formal order of Pope Leo XIII. In his new see he laboured, in accordance with the views of this pontiff, to rally Catholics to the French Government.

With this aim he wrote the Devoir des catholiques, an episcopal charge which attracted wide attention and earned for him the pope's congratulations. In addition he was summoned to Rome to be a cardinal at the curia (19 June 1899).

Having resigned the See of Toulouse (14 December 1899), his activities were thenceforward absorbed in the work of the Roman congregations and some secret diplomatic negotiations. Nevertheless, he found leisure to write on the Concordat of 1801 and the conclave of 1903.

In 1907 he was admitted to the Académie française with a discourse which attracted much notice. Death came to him unexpectedly next year in London, whither he had gone to assist at the Eucharistic Congress.

Works

Under a somewhat commonplace exterior he had an inquiring mind. His works include;

• "De Joannis abbatis Gorziensis vita" (Nancy 1878);
• "L'Ancien Régime dans la Province de Lorraine et Barrois" (Paris, 1871; 3rd ed., 1907);
• "Le Concordat de 1801" (Paris, 1903);
• "Les derniers jours de Leon XIII et le conclave de 1903" (Paris, 1904);
• "L'Ancien Régime En Lorraine Et Barrois, d'Après Des Documents Inédits: 1698-1789";
• "Instruction Pastorale de de Monseigneur L'Archeveque de Toulouse sur les Devoirs des Catholiques a l'heure presente et Mandement pour le Careme de l'an de grâce 1897";
• "Oeuvres".

A new edition of his works began to appear in Paris, July, 1910.

References

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "François-Désiré Mathieu". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.