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Sade, Donatien Alphonse François, comte de

(Encyclopedia)Sade, Donatien Alphonse François, comte de dônäsyăNˈ älfôNsˈ fräNswäˈ kôNt də säd [key], 1740–1814, French writer and libertine. He is known as the marquis de Sade —the title he held...

Le Pen, Marine

(Encyclopedia)Le Pen, Marine (Marion Anne Perrine Le Pen) lə pĕn, pŏN [key], 1968–, French politician, daughter of Jean-Marie Le Pen. A lawyer, she was in private practice (1992–98) before becoming head of ...

Le Corbusier

(Encyclopedia)Le Corbusier shärl ādwärˈ zhänərāˈ [key], 1887–1965, French architect, b. La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. Often known simply as “Corbu,” he was one of the most influential architects of ...

Colbert, Jean Baptiste

(Encyclopedia)Colbert, Jean Baptiste kôlbĕrˈ [key], 1619–83, French statesman. The son of a draper, he was trained in business and was hired by Cardinal Mazarin to look after his financial affairs. On his dea...

Louis XIV, king of France

(Encyclopedia)Louis XIV, 1638–1715, king of France (1643–1715), son and successor of King Louis XIII. Although he had a series of mistresses, Louis XIV finally came under the influence of Mme de Maintenon, wh...

Montaigne, Michel Eyquem, seigneur de

(Encyclopedia)Montaigne, Michel Eyquem, seigneur de mŏntānˈ, Fr. mēshĕlˈ ākĕmˈ sānyörˈ də môNtĕnˈyə [key], 1533–92, French essayist. Montaigne was one of the greatest masters of the essay as a li...

Marly-le-Roi

(Encyclopedia)Marly-le-Roi märlēˈ-lə-rwä [key], town (1990 pop. 16,775), Yvelines dept., N France, on the Seine River near Versailles. Nearby is the hamlet of Marly-la-Machine, where in 1682 a huge hydraulic e...

Le Gallienne, Richard

(Encyclopedia)Le Gallienne, Richard, 1866–1947, English man of letters. As literary critic and contributor to the Yellow Book, he was associated with the fin-de-siècle aesthetes of the 1890s before becoming a re...

Le Vau, Louis

(Encyclopedia)Le Vau, Louis lwē lə vō [key], 1612–70, French architect, involved in most of the important building projects for Louis XIV. He settled on the Île Saint-Louis, where he built his own house and t...

Colomb, Michel

(Encyclopedia)Colomb or Colombe, Michel both: mēshĕlˈ kôlôNˈ [key], c.1430–1512, French sculptor, one of the masters of the French Renaissance. Few of his works survive. His name is associated with the exec...