Page:Mind (Old Series) Volume 9.djvu/249

 GIORDANO BRUNO. 237 Nola in the kingdom of Naples, then under Spanish rule. His baptismal name was Filippo. The name of Giordano was assumed by him when he became a monk of the Dominican order at Naples. His noviciate began in 1562 or 1563. He received full orders in 1572. In 1576 he ceased to wear the Dominican habit. He had already been accused of heresy during his noviciate. He was now charged with holding heretical views on the Trinity. To avoid this charge he fled to Rome. At Eome the charge against him was to have been proceeded with ; but he was informed of this, and escaped to Genoa. After residing for a short time in various cities of the north, he at length decided to leave Italy. He went first to Geneva, where there were many Italian exiles ; but finding that to live there it would be necessary for him to profess Calvinism, he left Geneva after a residence of about two months. In 1577 or 1578 began his two years' residence at Toulouse. At the University of Toulouse he obtained the degree of doctor, and was appointed to an ordinary professorship of philo- sophy. In 1579 or 1580 he left Toulouse for Paris. There he published several Latin works, including the De Umbris L.h'.i.rum, besides an Italian comedy, H Co.nddaio. He re- fused an ordinary professorship which was offered him at the University of Paris, because in order to hold it he would have had to attend mass. An extraordinary professorship not having this obligation attached to it was conferred on him by Henry III., to whom he had dedicated the De Umbrii rum. Towards the end of 1583 he set out from France with letters from Henry to his ambassador at the court of Queen Elizabeth, Michel de Castelnau, who received him into his house. In London he frequented the society of Sir Philip Sidney, Fulke Greville and other distinguished men. He lectured and held disputations at Oxford. During his residence in England he published the most important of his works, the Italian dialogues ; of these the Cena (idle Ceneri, Delia Causa and Dell" Infinite are dedicated to Castel- nau, the Spaccio della Bestia trionfante and the Eroici Furori to Sidney. In 1585 he returned to Paris, where he drew up theses against the Aristotelian physics, which were after- wards published at "Wittenberg. These theses were defended by a disciple of his named Hennequin in a public disputation held on the 25th of May, 1586. Soon after this he left France for Germany. From August 1586 to May 1588 he resided at Wittenberg, lecturing at the University and teaching privately. In his valedictory address to the Uni- versity he praised the tolerance that was practised there and