Mathieu Anibert

Mathieu Louis Anibert (born with Arles, parish Saint-Pierre-of-Trinquetaille, the October 12th 1742, and deceased in the same parish the November 19th 1782) was a lawyer, a poet and a historian arlésien.

The childhood of Anibert

Wire of Vincent Anibert, middle-class man, and of Marguerite Noguier, it still lost her father child. His/her mother, described in her biographies like an intelligent and devoted woman, allowed the young man to undertake good studies, during which it showed excellent aptitudes for the music and poetry.

The man of right

It was directed thereafter worms of the studies of right. It passed its doctorate to Aix-en-Provence after which it returned to be established definitively in its birthplace. It acquired there brilliant famous of man of law, which one sought the opinion. Its excellent knowledge as regards divorce, of viduity, right of seniority, etc enabled him to be made a name in Arles. At the time of two lawsuits which he pled for the consuls of Arles, he became gradually the most famous lawyer arlésien of his time. However, Anibert pled little, showing aggravation for the litigious baffles.

The man of letters

It is that also Anibert unceasingly felt the call of the letters and the music. Being able as well to be expressed in French as in Italian, it composed some poems. It is in 1773 and with the writing of the Inconsistent one or the Festival of Wauxhall that he was recognized rightly for his literary talent. The abbot Bonnemant will say of this title that “it is one of its best works”. He was member of the Company of the inscriptions and beautiful letters, the Academy of Marseilles and the Academy of Nimes.

The historian

The History is certainly the principal passion of Mathieu Anibert. Its historical and critical Mémoires on the old Republic of Arles (Yverdon, 1779-1781, 3 volumes in 4 vol.) was worth the greatest praises to him. He was also the author of titles of local history, like topographic and historical Dissertation on the mountain of Cords and his monuments (Arles, ED. Jacques Mesnier, 1779) and other titles still (see bibliography).

Its failure with the election of the consuls

One refused to him his candidature for the post of consul for the reason which it had been born and, especially, resided on the bad side of the the Rhone. Being parish Saint-Pierre de Trinquetaille, it had been preferable that it had been born in intramural Arles. Trinquetaille was then regarded as vassal of Arles.

The death of Anibert

Died suddenly in full force of the age, at forty years, Anibert left unfinished works, which was all the more regrettable as it seemed at the beginning of a great work on the history of Arles. It was buried in the vault of the Penitent-Blue , close to the Rhone. Its epitaph is exposed to the Museon Arlaten. The Communal records preserve part of its works.

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