Page:History of the German people at the close of the Middle Ages vol1.djvu/163

 UNIVERSITIES AND OTHER CENTRES OF LEARNING 151 It won the admiration of all scholars, and reached seven editions within a year. Later (1514-1515) Peutin- ger enriched historical science with editions of three chronicles — the chronicle of Ursperg discovered by him, the history of the Goths by Jordanis, and the history of the Lombards by the deacon Paulus. The Emperor Maximilian had selected Peutinger for other works of an historical nature which were con- nected with that philanthropic emperor's well-known plans for the promotion of learning in Germany. The most active centres of these schemes were the Imperial Court at Vienna, where Maximilian en- deavoured to gather together the learned men of the day, and also the University of Vienna, which had grown to be the chief seat of learning in Europe. The Emperor Maximilian had already in early youth evinced a deep love of science and literature. Through the solicitude of his father he had received a careful education, and had been thoroughly instructed in all the different branches of the learning of his time. The library of Vienna contains writings of his on the genealogy and history of his own dynasty, on heraldry, on the science of artillery, on battle-arms, architecture, the chase, hawking, and other subjects. No prince of the Middle Ages equalled him as a linguist. He was familiar not only with the different dialects of his own dominions, but with those of many foreign lands ; so that in one of his campaigns he was able to converse with seven different commanders in their own languages. So great especially was his proficiency in Latin that Pirkheimer, who was acquainted with parts of his memoirs, assured a friend that no German scholar could have written in a purer style. Even during his