César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck [SEP] date of death
César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck
César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck or Hoensbroech (28 August 1724 - 3 June 1792) was a German ecclesiastic of the Van Hoensbroeck family, most notable as prince-bishop of Liège from 1784 to 1792, in which post he was nicknamed the "red executioner" ("bourreau roux").
Life.
The son of Ulric Antoine de Hoensbroeck (whose family originated in the village of Hoensbroeck, now in Dutch Limburg), he studied at Heidelberg and became
him much difficulty, despite the protection he enjoyed from the prince-bishop François-Charles de Velbrück. Exhausted by the minor persecutions his poetry suffered, he left for Paris, where he became friends with the most famous writers of the era. After Velbrück's death, conflict broke out between the new prince-bishop César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck and the people of his principality. Putting his pen at the service of his fellow citizens, Bassenge published pro-liberal pamphlets and at the same time studied the history