Audin J M Vincent

Audin J. M. Vincent a French litterateur, was born at Lyons in 1793, and studied theology at the seminary of Argentibre. He soon abandoned theology for the study of the law, but after being admitted to the bar he never practiced. In 1814 he came to Paris and commenced bookseller, at the same time keeping up his literary pursuits. The books for which his name is mentioned here are Histoire de la St. Barthlenmy (1826, 2 vols. 12mo); Histoire de la Vie, des Ouvrages, et des Doctrines de Luther (2 vols. 8vo; translated by Turnbull, London, 1854, 2 vols. 8vo); Histoire de la Vie, etc., de Calvin (1843, 2 vols. 8vo); Henry VIII et le Schisme d'Angleterre (2 vols. 8vo; transl. by Browne, Lond. 1852, 8vo). He died February 21st, 1851. His lives of Luther and Calvin are written in a controversial spirit, and are often unjust as well as inaccurate. Brownson (Roman Catholic) says of him that, as a writer of history, "he is conscientious and painstaking, but we cannot regard him as very sagacious or profound; and, under the relation of style and manner, he is not sufficiently grave and dignified to suit our taste, or to inspire us with full confidence in his judgment. He takes too much pains to be striking and brilliant, and appears to weigh the phrase more than the thought. Regarded as popular works, as they probably were designed to be, we esteem very highly Audin's biographies; but, regarded as studies on the Reformation, they are deficient in philosophical depth and comprehensiveness. They take, in our judgment, quite too-narrow and too superficial a view of the great Protestant movement, and afford us very little aid in understanding its real causes and internal character." — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale, 3, 604; Brownson's Review, January, 1855.