Nostradamus the man
Nostradamus - the manNostradamus
For four centuries Nostradamus's prophecies have inspired fear and
controversy. His followers say he predicted the French Revolution, the
birth and rise of Hitler, and the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Did he,
as his believers claim, predict some of history's most monumental events -
from the Great Fire of London to the launch disaster of the space shuttle
Challenger? Nostradamus was typical of the Renaissance time period. He made
many prophecies and was a major contributor to not only the Renaissance but
the 'Spirit of the Renaissance'.
Michel de Nostrodame (or his more used Latin name of Nostradamus) was born
a Jew in the small town of St.Remy de Province in southern France on the
14th of December 1503. Little is known about Nostradamus's family apart
from Jean his youngest brother became Procurer of the Parliament of
Province.
As a small boy Nostradamus underwent significant changes in his life. While
Nostradamus was a child his family was forced to convert to Roman
Catholicism. Around this time he was sent to live with his grandfather who
taught him the basics of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Mathematics and Astrology.
A few years later Nostradamus's grandfather died and he went to Avignon to
finish his schooling. Whilst at Avignon he also believed as did Galileo
that the Earth was round and circled the sun.
Nostradamus used his ability to help people through harsh times and did not
even fear for his own life. In 1525 he received his Bachelor's degree for
Medicine and went to help the fight against the 'Black Death' that was
feared throughout the Renaissance period.
After traveling for almost four years helping the sufferers of the Plague,
he returned to Avignon and won fame for his eagerness for learning which
ties in with the spirit of the Renaissance.
In 1532 he earned his Doctorate and became a Professor at the Montipellier
University but resigned within the same year. He then moved to Agen,
married and had a son and daughter. His life now seemed complete until an
outbreak of the Plague in Agen that killed his wife and children.
In 1538, he was accused of heresy because of a remark about a statue of the
Virgin Mary being like a devil that he had made years before. The
Inquisitors sent him to Toulouse to stand trial.
Leoni, Edgar stated that in 1554 Nostradamus settled in Marseilles after
wandering for six years keeping well clear of the church authorities.
During these time legends started to appear about his foreseeing powers. It
was not until later however that he received his fame with his prophetic
visions of the future - 942 cryptic poems called The Centuries - that have
preoccupied generation after generation of readers.
The Centauries (ten in total) were written in poem like form and contained
hard-to-break codes that were use to stop attention being drawn to him self
as...
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