Lorenzo (or Laurentius) Valla (c. 1406 - August 1, 1457) was an Italian humanist, rhetorician, and educator. His family was from Piacenza; his father, Luca dellea Vallea was a lawyer.

Education

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Valla was educated in Rome, attending the classes of eminent professors, among them Leonardo Bruni and Giovanni Aurispa, from whom he learned Latin and Greek. He also attended the University of Padua. In 1428 he sought a position with the papal diplomatic corps, but was turned down as being too young. In 1429, he accepted a position teaching rhetoric at Padua, but was compelled to resign after publishing an open letter mocking the scholastic method of jurisprudence.

In 1431 he entered the priesthood, and after trying vainly to secure a position as apostolic secretary in Rome he went to Piacenza, whence he proceeded to Pavia, where he obtained a professorship of eloquence. Valla wandered from one university to another, accepting short engagements and lecturing in many cities. In 1433 Valla made his way to Naples, and the court of Alfonso V of Aragon. Alfonso made Valla his private Latin secretary and defended him against the attacks of his numerous enemies. One such attack occurred when Valla was summoned before the Inquisition on account of his public statements about theology, including one in which he denied that the Apostles' Creed was composed in succession by each of the twelve Apostles. These charges were eventually dropped.

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