Latin Translation of Marmontel’s Novel Bélisaire (1767) by Mike Horvath, a Priest from Burgenland (Belisarius, 1772)

Sa？etak In 1767 Jean-Fran？ois Marmontel (1723-1799) published a “novel” under the title Bélisaire. Much more a socio-philosophical treaty well anchored in its century’s philosophy than an adventure novel, Marmontel’s Bélisaire was an immediate success in his time and inspired many a literary follower in decades to come. Summing up the key ideas of its time, namely freedom of thought in religious matters, civil toleration (the novel’s strongest point, the most criticized by its opponents as well as the most fiercely defended by its author), implementation of an enlightened model of monarchy, a most wished for reform of the tax system and, on a larger scale, of various other social institutions, Marmontel’s work quickly gained popularity, which was largely due to his author’s triumph over the Sorbonne theological party. The leitmotiv (partly legendary and partly based on available historical facts) of Justinian’s old general, whose conduct was synonym of nothing but impeccable righteousness, was not unknown to the European literary pre-Enlightenment production, though back then the traditional plot lacked the novelty elements with which Marmontel endowed his Bélisaire. In this lineage we can place a play entitled Belisarius or Elpidia (1703) by the Ragusan poet Antun Gle？evi？. But, it was primarily the ideological filament of Marmontel's novel that inspired the Croatian priest Miho (Michael) Horvath (1733-1810) to publish a Latin version of Marmontel's text (most probably in 1772). A second Latin version of the text (published by a Vienna typographer Ludwig – Aloysius – Doll) appeared in 1806