The Leuven Collegium Trilingue 1517-1797: Erasmus, Humanist Educational Practice and the New Language Institute Latin-Greek-Hebrew

The Louvain Collegium Trilingue: an appealing story of courageous vision

and an unseen international success. Thanks to the legacy of Hieronymus

Busleyden, counsellor at the Great Council in Mechelen, Erasmus launched

the foundation of a new college where international experts would teach

Latin, Greek and Hebrew for free, and where bursaries would live

together with their professors.

The foundation at the Louvain Fish Market, however, met with strong

opposition in a dramatic period of political and religious tensions. At

the same time, it conquered the whole of Europe alike. Hundreds of

students from various countries travelled to the Three-Language College,

renowned professors worked and taught there until the institute was

closed down during the French Revolution.

In this book the secret “Erasmian’ recipe used in this humanist language

education is analyzed and contextualized by specialists in the field.

Moreover, it appears that these new didactics in language and literature

also initiated an inspiring new scientific method.