François Maynard, sometimes seen as "de Maynard" (21 November 1582 – 28 December 1646) was a French

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

who spent much of his life in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

Biography

Maynard was born in Toulouse to a father who was ''conseiller'' in the ''parlement'' of the town. François was also trained for the law, becoming eventually president of

Aurillac Aurillac (; oc, Orlhac ) is the prefecture of the Cantal department, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Aurillacois'' or ''Aurillacoises''. Geography Aurillac is at above sea leve ...

. He became secretary to

Margaret of Valois Margaret of Valois (french: Marguerite, 14 May 1553 – 27 March 1615), popularly known as La Reine Margot, was a French princess of the Valois dynasty who became Queen of Navarre by marriage to Henry III of Navarre and then also Queen of France ...

, wife of

Henry IV of France Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monar ...

, for whom his early poems are written. He was a disciple of Malherbe, who said that in the workmanship of his lines he excelled

Racan Honorat de Bueil, seigneur de Racan (sometimes mistakenly listed as "marquis de Racan", although he never held this title) (5 February 1589 – 21 January 1670) was a French aristocrat, soldier, poet, dramatist and (original) member of the Aca ...

, but lacked his rival's energy. In 1634 he accompanied the

Cardinal de Noailles Louis-Antoine de Noailles (27 May 16514 May 1729), second son of Anne, 1st duc de Noailles, was a French bishop and cardinal. His signing of the Unigenitus bull in 1728 would end the formal Jansenist controversy. Biography Louis-Antoine de Noai ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and spent about two years in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. On his return to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

he made many unsuccessful efforts to obtain the favor of

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...

, but was obliged to retire to Toulouse. He never ceased to lament his exile from Paris and his inability to be present at the meetings of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

, of which he was one of the earliest members. The best of his poems is in imitation of

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...

, "Alcippe, reviens dans nos bois". He died at Toulouse in 1646. His works consist of odes, epigrams, songs and letters, and were published in 1646 by Mann le Roy de Gomberville. One of his famous poems is called "Le Nouveau Riche": Pierre who during his youth, Was a famous cobbler; Is superb of his richness And ashamed of his old trade. This fortunate merchant of boots Owns a park, close to my home, Of which the fountains and the grottos Are worthy of the houses of the king. I am confused when I think That he dug a canal there By which the magnificent expense would astonish the cardinal.

Notes

References

External links

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A collection of his poems
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maynard, Francois de 1582 births 1646 deaths Writers from Toulouse Members of the Académie Française 17th-century French poets 17th-century French male writers French male poets