Henricus Smeulders
{{Infobox Christian leader
| image=Abbatia CIST Sbernadiensis 20.JPG
| caption= Portrait inside Bornem Abbey
| type = Mitred abbot
| honorific-prefix = The Reverend Lord
| name = Henricus Smeulders
| honorific-suffix =OCist
| title = ordinis procurator generalis
| church = Roman Catholic
| see =
| ended =
| predecessor = Girolamo Bottino
| opposed =
| successor =
| ordination = 1878 in Rome
| consecration =
| cardinal =
| rank =
| other_post =Titular abbot of Santa Maria di Valdiponte
| birth_name = Joseph-Gauthier-Henri
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1826|5|13|df=y}}
| birth_place = Mol, Antwerp Province, United Kingdom of the Netherlands
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1892|6|28|1826|5|13|df=y}}
| buried =
| nationality = Belgian
| occupation =
| alma_mater = Gregorian University
| signature =
}}
Dom Henricus Smeulders, O.Cist. (13 May 1826 – 28 June 1892),{{cite web |title=Henricus Smeulders |url=https://www.cistopedia.org/index.php?id=8882 |website=www.cistopedia.org |access-date=17 December 2021}} born Joseph-Gauthier-Henri,{{cite web|url=http://nuntiatura.ca/fr/history/ |title=Histoire | Nonciature Apostolique Au Canada |publisher=Nuntiatura.ca |date= |access-date=2017-06-21}} was a Belgian Abbot of the Common observance.Battista, Gregorio: Il procuratore generale dell’Ordine cistercense e la separazione dei Cistercensi Riformati (1890-1892). In: Analecta cisterciensia. 34 (1978), S. [330]-345. He was considered one of the major historical figures of Cistercian history of the second half of the 19th century.{{cite web|url=http://www.zisterzienserlexikon.de/wiki/Smeulders,_Henricus |title=SMEULDERS, Henricus (Josef Walter) OCist (1826–1892) – Biographia Cisterciensis |language=de |publisher=Zisterzienserlexikon.de |date= |access-date=2017-06-21}}
Career
He entered in 1843 in Bornem Abbey, 17 years old. He became Doctor of Theology in 1858 at the Gregorian University, Rome. During his life in Bornem he was between 1858 and 1865 Librarian. By request of the Abbot General he was sent back to Rome, and became famous for his knowledge of the Cistercian history. He was requested by the Italian Cistercian Congregation to succeed Procuratorordinis procurator generalis. Hieronymus Bottino, who died in 1871.
He was elected titular abbot of Santa Maria di Valdiponte, in 1878. His fame in Rome was remarked by pope Leo XIII, who sent him as apostolic delegate to Canada.O. C. Com. Apost. in Canada{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/cihm_09131 |title=A Son Excellence Dom Henri Smeulders, commissaire apostolique au Canada [microforme] : Livernois, Victor : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive |year=1883 |isbn=9780665091315 |access-date=2017-06-21}} He was accompanied by his secretary Dom Amadeus. After his return in Rome, he requested to retrait and he died there in 1892. He was buried in Campo Verano. His portrait is kept inside the Abbey of Bornem.
References
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Category:People from Mol, Belgium
Category:19th-century Belgian Roman Catholic theologians
Category:Pontifical Gregorian University alumni
Category:19th-century Christian abbots
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