Erasmus

Introduction
Early life and career
The wandering scholar
The Protestant challenge
Final years
Influence and achievement

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images

Portrait of Desiderius Erasmus, shown in dark robes and cap, writing with a quill at a desk, after Quinten Massijs, oil on panel, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Engraving of Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam writing at a sloped desk, with an open book, inkwell, and flowers on the table; a framed inscription hangs behind him.

At a Glance

Desiderius Erasmus summary

Related Questions

How did Desiderius Erasmus believe education could shape a person’s character?
How did Desiderius Erasmus criticize abuses in the medieval church?
How did Desiderius Erasmus respond to Martin Luther’s early writings?
How did Desiderius Erasmus support himself while studying in Paris?
How did Desiderius Erasmus’s ideas help encourage religious reform?
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How did Martin Luther answer Erasmus in De servo arbitrio?
How did Thomas More and Desiderius Erasmus become friends?
How did later thinkers such as Voltaire view Desiderius Erasmus?
How many entries did Erasmus include in his expanded Adagia?
What argument did Erasmus make in De libero arbitrio?
What church reforms did Erasmus suggest to Pope Adrian VI?
What did Desiderius Erasmus and Martin Luther disagree about concerning free will?
What did Erasmus argue about war in The Complaint of Peace?
What role did Desiderius Erasmus think governments should have in training teachers?
What subjects did Erasmus criticize in Praise of Folly?
When and where was Desiderius Erasmus born?
When did Desiderius Erasmus publish his first edition of the Greek New Testament?
Which Church Fathers did Desiderius Erasmus edit and publish?
Who was Aldus Manutius and how did he work with Desiderius Erasmus?
Who was Alexander Hegius and how did he influence Desiderius Erasmus?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus ask his printer not to confuse his work with Martin Luther’s?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus believe Greek was important for studying Christianity?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus criticize Scholastic education?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus dislike studying theology at the University of Paris?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus enter an Augustinian monastery?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus focus on Latin, Greek, and Hebrew in education?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus give little importance to science in education?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus hope Catholics and Lutherans could reconcile?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus leave Basel for Freiburg im Breisgau in 1529?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus leave monastic life after becoming a priest?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus oppose superstition in religious practice?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus oppose using harsh discipline on children?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus return to Basel near the end of his life?
Why did Desiderius Erasmus travel to England in 1499?
Why did Erasmus believe Christians should study the writings of the Church Fathers?
Why did Erasmus collect Greek and Latin proverbs in Adagia?
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External Websites

Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Desiderius Erasmus
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - Biography of Desiderius Erasmus
Erasmus School of Philosophy - Desiderius Erasmus (1469-1536)
World History Encyclopedia - Desiderius Erasmus
Online Library of Liberty - Desiderius Erasmus (1469-1536)

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Desiderius Erasmus - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Erasmus

Dutch humanist

Also known as: Desiderius Erasmus

Written by

James D. Tracy

Professor of History, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Author of Erasmus: The Growth of a Mind and others.

James D. Tracy

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Oct. 23, 2026 •History

Erasmus (born October 27, 1469 [1466?], Rotterdam, Holland [now in the Netherlands]—died July 12, 1536, Basel, Switzerland) was a Dutch humanist who was the greatest scholar of the northern Renaissance, the first editor of the New Testament, and also an important figure in patristics and classical literature. Using the philological methods pioneered by Italian humanists, Erasmus helped lay the groundwork for the historical-critical study of the past, especially in his studies of the Greek New...

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