Baudius was born in a
calvinistic family in the
Southern Netherlands in Lille. His original name was probably
Dominique Baudier, though sources only show his Latinised name Dominicus Baudius. As a result of the arrival of the new regent of the low countries, the
Duke of Alba in 1568, Baudius moved to
Aachen along with his parents and sister. After finishing at the local school he proceeded to study
theology first in Leiden from 1578 to 1579 and then in
Geneva in 1581. In 1583 he returned to Leiden to study
Law. In 1585 he graduated. During his time in Leiden he formed connections with
Justus Lipsius and
Janus Dousa. After his study, Baudius became part of an envoy to England, where he stayed from 1583 to 1585 and where he formed a friendship with the poet
Philip Sidney, introduced by
Daniel Rogers. Back in the Netherlands he lived in
Middelburg, and for some time served as advocate for the court of
Holland in
The Hague. In 1591 he left for France, where he remained for ten years. He stayed amongst others in Caen and Tours, and maintained himself with various jobs and support from friends such as
Jacques-Auguste de Thou. However, he frequently had financial difficulties, and in 1598 he spent some time in prison in Paris because of debt incurred from a love-affair. In 1602 Baudius was in London, after which he travelled to Leiden via Hamburg and The Hague, and he was appointed extraordinary professor of
Rhetoric for the
University of Leiden. He also taught law, and in 1611 he was appointed ordinary professor of history. In the same year he was appointed historian for the
French States-General together with
Johannes Meursius, with the assignment to write down the events of 1609–1611. This resulted in the
Libri tres de Induciis belli Begici (
Three books about the Truce in the dutch war). In Leiden he befriended amongst others
Daniel Heinsius and
Hugo Grotius. He must have had an attractive and cheerful personality as his classes were very popular. His private life was in bad order. He was troubled by his drinking habits and love-affairs, and he always had financial difficulties. His first wife, whom he probably had not married lawfully, died in 1609. After he had an illegitimate child with a prostitute, he was suspended from the senate of the university of leiden in March 1612. He died in 1613, at the age of 52, after several days of heavy drinking. Dominicus Baudius was buried in the
Peters-church in Leiden. ==Works==