Medievalist; professor of philosophy. He was born in Ypres, Belgium or in Dutch Leper, Belgium. De Bruyne attended high school at the St.-Vincentiuscollege in Ypres. In 1915, when the Germans attacked Ypres in World War I, the family fled to Sées in France (Orne). Here De Bruyne continued his high school education. In September 1916 he joined the Belgian army. After the war De Bruyne enrolled at Louvain University to study philosophy while still serving in the army. After having earned his Bachelor's degree, in 1919, he entered the Benedictine abbey, Regina Coeli, in Louvain.