COEFFETEAU, NICOLAS. - Dominican archbishop and polemicist, b. at Château-du-Loir in 1574, d. at Paris on 21 April 1623. He took the habit at Le Mans (1588), was sent to Paris to the convent of S. Giacomo (1590), where he received a doctorate in theology; he was professor, prior, regent of studies for 9 years, and vicar general of the Gallican Congregation. Enrico IV chose him as ordinary preacher (1608). At the suggestion of Luigi XIII, Paolo V appointed him titular bishop of Dardania (1617); he became coadjutor to the bishop of Metz, where he worked actively for the reform of the abbeys and for the defense of the faith against the Calvinists. In 1621 he was designated bishop of Marseille, but death preceded the bull of investiture.
A prolific writer, C. engaged in acute controversy with Giacomo I d'Inghilterra, Pietro de Mulin, Filippo Duplessis-Mornay, and Marcantonio De Dominis over the doctrines they opposed: the Eucharist, ecclesiastical hierarchy, and papal authority. He left many other works, both original and translated, all composed with purity of language and style (only the Pro monarchia Ecclesiae cathi, against De Dominis, is in Latin), so that he is regarded as one of the creators of French prose. In ascetical doctrine he is remembered for the Tableau des passions humaines, de leurs causes et de leurs effets (Paris 1620), which went through 16 editions in 40 years.