Louis Legendre (; 1655–1733), was a French

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

. Born at

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

(

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

) to poor parents, Legendre owed the benefit of an education to

François de Harlay de Champvallon François de Harlay de Champvallon (; François III de Harlay; 14 August 1625 – 6 August 1695) was the fifth Archbishop of Paris. Life and church Early years Harlay de Champvallon was born in Paris, the nephew of François de Harlay, ar ...

, the archbishop of his native city, whom he followed to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, where he received a

canonical The adjective canonical is applied in many contexts to mean 'according to the canon' the standard, rule or primary source that is accepted as authoritative for the body of knowledge or literature in that context. In mathematics, ''canonical exampl ...

at Notre Dame. He then went on to become abbot of Clairfontaine. Legendre's style has been described as elegant, correct, and his criticism judicious and impartial. The facts he recounts are always backed up by convincing evidence. While not a first rank historian, Legendre nonetheless offers information of interest. Legendre was the first benefactor of the

Académie des Sciences, Belles-Lettres et Arts de Rouen The Académie des Sciences, Belles-Lettres et Arts de Rouen is a learned society created by letters patent of Louis XV of France, Louis XV on 17 June 1744. The Academy of Rouen got its early start with a few friends with a common appreciation for ...

. He also founded the competitive examination prize for the Paris colleges.

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Legendre, Louis 18th-century French historians Writers from Rouen 1655 births 1733 deaths French male non-fiction writers 19th-century French historians