Erasmian Irenism in the Poetry of Pierre de Ronsard

Erasmus's rejection of war and the horrors that it caused needs little elaboration, as the subject has attracted much scholarly interest over the years. The impact of his views may be seen in French humanist circles early in the sixteenth century, with the 1525 adage "Dulce bellum inexpertis" constituting one of the most devastating critiques of warfare to have been written. Pierre De Ronsard's interest in Greek may well have taken him to the Adages, and the suspicion in which Erasmus was held in conservative circles in France in the middle years of the sixteenth century, as elsewhere in Europe, is unlikely to have concerned him, though Erasmus's works were all placed on the Index of Paul IV in 1559. This chapter examines some poems by Ronsard which demonstrate not only his commitment to peace but also the Erasmian principles that underlie them. Keywords: Erasmus's works; Europe; Pierre De Ronsard