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Monod, Pierre

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a learned Savoyard Jesuit, was born at Bonneville in 1586. He entered the Order of Jesuits in 1603, taught belles-lettres and philosophy in different colleges of his order, and finally became principal of that of Turin. Appointed confessor to the duchess Christine, sister of Louis XIII of France, he exercised much influence over that princess, and shared largely in the direction of political affairs. In 1636 he was sent to Paris to reclaim the honors of royalty for the house of Savoy, but he was unable to obtain an interview with Richelieu. Irritated by having his demands eluded, he allied himself with the enemies of the ministry, especially with Caussin, confessor to Louis XIII, with the object of overthrowing the cardinal. Richelieu, partly divining these intrigues, sent Monod back to Turin, when the latter endeavored to withdraw Christine from the French alliance. Then the cardinal attempted to remove him from the service of the duchess; but Monod knew how to preserve his authority over her. In 1640 he was arrested by the order of Richelieu, imprisoned first at Pignerol, and subsequently at Cundo, but found means of escaping; and was finally retaken and transferred to Miolan's, where, in spite of the interposition of the pope, he remained until his death, March 31, 1644. He is the author of Recherches historiques sur les alliances de France et de Savoie (Lyons, 1621, 4to): — Amedeus pacificus, seu de Eugenii IV et Amedei Sabaudiae ducis, in sua obedientia Felicis V nuncupati, controversiis (Turin, 1624, 4to; Paris, 1626, 8vo); reproduced in the seventeenth volume of the Annales of Baronius: — Apologie pour la Maison de Savoie contre les scandaleuses invectives de la Premiere et Seconde Savoysienne (Chambery, 1631, 4to); followed by a Second Apologie, which, translated into Italian by the author, appeared at Turin (1632, 4to): — Trattato del titolo regio dovuto alla casa di Savoya, con un ristretto delle revoluzioni del Reame di Cipri e ragioni della casa di Savoya sopra di esso (Turin, 1633, fol.) this work, published at the same time in Latin, was the cause of a quarrel between Savoy and Venice; it was attacked with violence by Graswinckel: — Il Capricorno ossia l'Oroscopo d'Augusto Cesare (Turin, 1633, 8vo); fictitious: — Extirpation de l'Heresie, ou Declaration des motifs que le Roi de France a d'abandonner la protection de Geneve; the second part remains unedited, as well as the following works, preserved in MS. in the university library of Turin: — Annales ecclesiastici et civiles Sabaudiae; Vita B. Margaritae Sabaudiae, marchionissae Montisferrati; etc. See Rosetti, Scriptores Pedemontii, page 470; Richelieu, Memoirs, volume 10; Le Vassor, Hist. de Louis XIII; Botta, Storia d' Italia.