Cornelis (Cornelius) Columbanus Vrancx (Dendermonde, circa 1529/1530 – Ghent, 15 August 1615)[1][2] was a Flemish writer of prose, poetic refrains and spotlighted against the Reformed.
[4] Originally from Dendermonde in the County of Flanders, Vrancx studied theology at Leuven University, graduating in 1560, and in 1569 was appointed to a canonry of St Bavo's Cathedral, Ghent.
[5] After the Calvinist takeover of the city in 1578, Vrancx remained in Ghent despite the clergy of the cathedral being declared banished.
Vrancx was a renowned preacher and a prolific author of devotional and satirical verse and prose, with over 30 titles to his name.
His most popular work, Den Troost der Sielen, includes five folk tales about spirits returned from purgatory.