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Renan, Ernest

(Encyclopedia)Renan, Ernest ĕrnĕstˈ rənäNˈ [key], 1823–92, French historian and critic. He began training for the priesthood but renounced it in 1845. His first trip to Italy (1849) influenced his interest ...

Viollet-le-Duc, Eugène Emmanuel

(Encyclopedia)Viollet-le-Duc, Eugène Emmanuel özhĕnˈ ĕmänüĕlˈ vyôlāˈ-lə-dük [key], 1814–79, French architect and writer. He was the most prominent exponent of the Gothic revival in France, and was i...

Villon, François

(Encyclopedia)Villon, François fräNswäˈ vēyôNˈ [key], 1431–1463?, French poet, b. Paris, whose original name was François de Montcorbier or François Des Loges. One of the earliest great poets of France, ...

Malherbe, François de

(Encyclopedia)Malherbe, François de fräNswäˈ də mälĕrbˈ [key], 1555–1628, French poet and critic, official poet of Henry IV and Louis XIII. His own poems approach technical perfection but lack verve and f...

Enghien

(Encyclopedia)Enghien, Du. Edingen, town, Hainaut prov., W central Belgium. It is a tourist center and has industries that manufacture linen and lace. Enghien ...

Pajou, Augustin

(Encyclopedia)Pajou, Augustin ōgüstăNˈ päzho͞oˈ [key], 1730–1809, French sculptor. He won the Prix de Rome at the age of 18 and began a long career of royal commissions. He is noted for the elegance of his...

Camargue

(Encyclopedia)Camargue kämärgˈ [key], alluvial lowland, c.215 sq mi (560 sq km), Bouches-du-Rhône dept., SE France, in the Rhône delta. Formed by sedimentation, it has numerous shallow lagoons cut off from the...

Brillat-Savarin, Anthelme

(Encyclopedia)Brillat-Savarin, Anthelme äNtĕlmˈ brēyäˈ-sävärăNˈ [key], 1755–1826, French lawyer, economist, and gastronomist, famous for his witty treatise on the art of dining, La Physiologie du goût ...

Laplace, Pierre Simon, marquis de

(Encyclopedia)Laplace, Pierre Simon, marquis de pyĕr sēmôNˈ märkēˈ də läpläsˈ [key], 1749–1827, French astronomer and mathematician. At 18 he went to Paris, proved his gift for mathematical analysis to...

Machaut, Guillaume de

(Encyclopedia)Machaut, Guillaume de gēyōmˈ də mäshōˈ [key], c.1300–1377, French poet and composer. Variants of his name include Machault, de Machaudio, and de Mascaudio. He studied theology and took holy o...

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