The present volume is the English translation of the original Dutch language biography of John Calvin (July 10, 1509 - May 27, 1564), a French theologian, pastor and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. Born Jehan Cauvin in Noyon, Picardy, France, Calvin was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism, aspects of which include the doctrines of predestination and of the absolute sovereignty of God in salvation of the human soul from death and eternal damnation, in which doctrines Calvin was influenced by and elaborated upon the Augustinian and other Christian traditions. Various Congregational, Reformed and Presbyterian churches, which look to Calvin as the chief expositor of their beliefs, have spread throughout the world.