MURI
643
MURI
search for Ciceronian locutions, and he felt compelled
to protest against the exaggerations of contemporary
Ciceronians. He himself tells of an amusing incident,
when he purposely employed, in speaking Latin, a
word not to be found in Nizolius's Ciceronian Lexi-
con: some of his hearers exclaimed in horror at the
apparent slip, and then, when he showed them the
word in Cicero's own text, were equally enthusiastic
in their plaudits. His most interesting work, "Va-
riae lectiones" (1559, 15S0, 1585), contains not only
observations on ancient authors, but notes of real
value in relation to the history of his own times.
Such, for instance, is his account of a conversation
with his patron, the Cardinal of Ferrara, about St.
Pius V, whose election had put an end to the cardi-
nal's ambitions (XVI, 4). Muret's works were edited
by Ruhnken (Leyden, 4 vols., 1789), and another
edition appeared at Verona (5 vols., 1727-30). Be-
sides the editions of authors above mentioned, we are
indebted to him for Cicero's Catalinian Orations
(Paris, 1581), the first book of his Tusculan Dispu-
tations, his Philippics (Paris, 1562), Seneca's "De
providentia", and some notes on Sallust and Tacitus.
Dejob, Marc-Antoiiic Murel (Paris, 1881) ; Sandys, A History of Classical Scholarship, II CCambridge, 1903), 148.
Paul Lejay.
Muri (Muri-Gries), an abbey of monks of the Order of S. Benedict, which flourished for over eight centuries at Muri near Basle in Switzerland, and which is now established under Austrian rule at Gries near Bozen in Tyrol.
The monastery of St. Martin at Muri in the Canton of Aargau, in the Diocese of Basle (but originally in that of Constance), was founded in 1027 by the illus- trious house of Hapsburg. Rha, a daughter of Fred- erick, Duke of Lorraine, who married Rabets, Count of Hapsburg, and Werner, Bishop of Strasburg, with one accord gave the lands, which each possessed at Muri, to a monastery which they established in that place. To people the new foundation a colony of monks was drawn from the Abbey of St. Meinrad at Einsiedeln, under the leadership of Prior Reginbold, on whose death in 1055 the first abbot was chosen in the person of Burchard. During his rule the abbey church was consecrated in 1064; it was for many years the burial place of the Hapsburg dynasty. About this time the community was reinforced by the accession of a new colony of monks from the Abbey of St. Blaise in the Black Forest, one of whom, the blessed Luitfrid, continued the government of both communities till his holy death 31 December, 1096. During the Middle Ages the monastery, like so many hundreds of similar institutions of the Benedictine Order, pursued its quiet work of religion and civiliza- tion, and enjoyed the advantage of being governed by a remarkable succession of able men. Among the names of its more distinguished abbots are those of Ranzelin; Cuno, founder of its school, and a generous benefactor to the library of the monastery; Henry Scheuk who greatly increased its landed property; and Henry de Schoenwerd. The history of the last named presents a curious instance, almost without parallel, of a whole family embracing the religious life. The father with his sons entered the abbey of the monks, whilst his wife and daughters betook them- selves to the adjoining convent of nuns, a community which later on was transferred to Hermetschwil, a mile or two distant from Muri. The good reputation enjoved by the Abbev of Muri procured it many friends. In 1114 the Emperor Henry V took it under his special protection; and the popes on their side were not less solicitous for its welfare; it would seem, however, tliat the use of pontificalia was not granted to the abbots of Muri until the time of Pope Julius II (1503-1513).
Like all other institutions the place had its vicissi- tudes of good and bad fortune. It was laid low by two
disastrous conflagrations, in 1300 and in 1363; wars
and risings checked for a time its prosperity. It re-
covered somewhat of its old life under Abbot Conrad
II, only to suffer again under his successor George
Russinger in the war between Austria and Switzer-
land. Russinger had taken part in the Council of
Constance and had caught something of the reforming
spirit of that assembly. He was the means of aggre-
gating his community to the newly formed Congrega-
tion of Bursfeld, the first serious attempt to bring
about among the continental monasteries of northern
Europe a sane and much needed reform of the Black
Monks of St. Benedict. It was owing to him too that
the Helvetic Confederation took over, as it were, the
old Hapsburg friendliness towards his abbey which,
thus strengthened both in its inner life and observance,
and safe under the protection of the new political
powers, was enabled to withstand the shock of the
religious wars and ecclesiastical upheavals which
marked the advent of the Protestant Reformation.
When the first fury of that movement had abated
Muri was fortunate in having as abbot a man of re-
markable ability. Dom John Jodoc Singisen elected
in 1596 proved himself a second founder of his mon-
astery, and extending his care to the other Benedic-
tine houses of Switzerland is rightly revered as one of
the founders of the Swiss Congregation established
in 1602. Largely through his efforts discipline was
everywhere restored; monks of piety and letters went
forth from Muri to repeople the half ruined cloisters;
by his wisdom suitable constitutions were drawn up
for such communities of nuns as had survived so many
revolutions. His successor Dom Dominic Tschudi
was a man of like mould, and a scholar whose works
were held in great repute. He was born at Baden in
1595 and died there in 1654. His "Origo et genealo-
gia comitum de Hapsburg" is his best known work.
With the eighteenth century fresh honours came to
Muri. The Emperor Leopold I created Abbot Placid
Zurlauben and his successors Princes of the Holy
Roman Empire, and spent a vast sum of money in re-
building and embellishing the monastery and church,
the ancient mausoleum of the imperial family. The
abbey continued to prosper in every way; good disci-
pline was kept up and many distinguished ecclesias-
tics and learned men were educated within its walls.
With the spread of revolutionary ideas, however, a
great and disastrous change was impending. Some of
the Swiss Cantons, Aargau among them, following the
melancholy example of the revolutionary party which
had wrecked religion in France, turned all their ener-
gies to the overthrow of the monasteries, the confisca-
tion of their estates, and the elimination of Catholic
influence from civil life. They were only too success-
ful. Muri after a long series of attacks was obliged to
succumb. Its abbot, an old man, had withdrawn to
the monastery of Engelberg, more favourably situated,
and there died on 5 November, 1S38, leaving to his
successor, D. Adalbert Regli, the brunt of the final
conflict. The crisis came when on a winter's day in
1841 an armed force drove the monks into exile and
the cantonal authorities seized the abbey and its es-
tates. Despite this violent ex-pulsion the community
never wholly disbanded; the abbot and some of the
monks held together and soon found a welcome from
the Catholic Canton of Unterwalden, which invited
them to undertake the management of the cantonal
college at Sarnen. The kindly offer was accepted,
and there the main body of the monks resided, the
Lord Abbot himself taking his share in the school
work, until the Austrian Emperor, Ferdinand I, of-
fered them a residence at Gries near Bozen in Tyrol, in
an old priory of Augustiiiian Canons of the Latoran
which had been unneeu))ieil since 1807. The Holy
See concurred in the grant, and confirmed the transfer
of the community of Muri to Gries by a Brief of
Gregory XVI, dated 16 September, 1844. In order
