EncyclopediaHotman, François
Hotman, François (fräNswä' ôtmäN) [key], 1524–90, French jurist. Converted (1547) to Protestantism and implicated (1560) in the conspiracy of Amboise (see Amboise, conspiracy of), he spent large parts of his life in Switzerland. In his most influential work, Franco-Gallia (1573), he was among the first to point out the Germanic origin of the early Frankish institutions, and on that basis he advocated an elective monarchy for France.
See studies by B. Reynolds (1931, repr. 1968) and D. R. Kelley (1973).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Law: Biographies
