GOUVEA, ALEXANDER de. - Of the Third Regular Order of St. Francis, bishop of Peking, b. 2 Aug. 1751 at Evora (Portugal), d. 6 July 1808. He took religious vows in 1773; he pursued his studies at the University of Coimbra, where he obtained a degree in mathematical sciences. He was a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences of Lisbon. Elected bishop of Peking in 1782, he received consecration at Goa on 2 Feb. 1783.

His vast learning earned him the post of president of the Tribunal of Mathematical Sciences of Peking. Although under a regime of persecution, he enjoyed great esteem at court and for this reason obtained the release from prison of certain apostolic vicars. A most zealous pastor, he succeeded in pacifying minds and healing the divisions among the missionaries. His manuscripts in Chinese, Latin and Portuguese are held at the Library of the Convent of Our Lady of Jesus in Lisbon.

Bibliography3 works

BIBL.: A. Duvigneau, A propos de mgr. Al. de G., évêque de Pékin (1782-1808), in Bulletin cath. de Pékin, 26 (1939), pp. 219-328; 27 (1940), pp. 237-62. Further references are found in Streit, Bibl., VII, nos. 3722, 3741, 3815, 3857; X, nos. 1109-1112, 1115-17, 1316, 1389, 1416.

Carlo Santi

@incollection{ec6_gouvea_alexander_de, author = {Santi, Carlo}, title = {Gouvea, alexander de}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {VI}, pages = {967}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1951}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/gouvea-alexander-de} }

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Gouvea, Alexander de

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