abbé de Vertot

Born at Bennetot in Normandy on November 25, 1655, and dead in Paris on June 15, 1735, abbé de Vertot — René-Aubert Vertot — was a French clergyman and historian. He studied with Jesuits, entered the Capuchins while still young, and later joined the Premonstratensians before eventually settling into a career centered on scholarship and writing.

Vertot built his reputation through energetic historical works that favored movement, conflict, and strong narrative drive. Among the books most associated with him are his histories of the revolutions of Portugal, Sweden, and the Roman Republic, along with his history of the Knights Hospitaller of Saint John of Jerusalem. He was also admitted to the Académie des Inscriptions, a sign of the standing he achieved in learned circles.

Readers have long remembered him not just for what he wrote, but for how he wrote: with pace, clarity, and a taste for the memorable scene. That storytelling gift made his books widely read, even as later readers sometimes noted that he preferred a striking narrative over exacting detail.