author
Candide Chalippe
1684–1757
A French Franciscan writer and theologian from the early 18th century, he is best remembered for a widely read life of Saint Francis of Assisi. His work blends devotion, storytelling, and moral reflection in a way that helped keep Franciscan spirituality alive for later readers.
1 Audiobook
The Life and Legends of Saint Francis of Assisi
by Candide Chalippe
About the author
Born in Paris in 1684, Candide Chalippe was a French theologian and a member of the Recollect branch of the Franciscan order. The surviving reference works available online describe him chiefly through his religious vocation and a small body of devotional writing.
He is best known for his Life of Saint Francis of Assisi, first published in French in the 1720s and later translated into English as The Life and Legends of Saint Francis of Assisi. That book became the work most strongly associated with his name and is the title by which many modern readers still encounter him.
Chalippe died in Paris in 1757. Reliable biographical detail appears to be quite limited in easily accessible sources today, but his reputation endures through his writing on Saint Francis and the spiritual tradition it helped pass on.