Madame Denis
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Marie Louise Mignot (February 12, 1712 – August 10, 1790) was a French literary figure. She was the daughter of
Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...
's sister, Catherine Arouet (1686–1726) and her husband Pierre-François Mignot (d. 1737). After the death of her widowed father in 1737, Voltaire provided her with a dowry and she married army supply officer Nicolas-Charles Denis, giving rise to her married name of Madame Denis. Pearson, Roger, 2005. ''Voltaire Almighty: a life in pursuit of freedom''. Bloomsbury. . p. 186 After her husband's premature death in 1744, she was taken in by her uncle Voltaire and became his housekeeper, hostess and companion. She also adopted his protégée
Reine Philiberte de Varicourt Reine Philiberte Rouph de Varicourt (1757–1822) was a French woman of letters. The sister of Pierre-Marin Rouph de Varicourt, she was spotted by Voltaire during his stay at Ferney – he made her his adoptive daughter, married her off to th ...
when the latter's marriage to the
Charles, marquis de Villette Charles Michel, Marquis de Villette (4 December 1736 – 7 July 1793) was a French writer and politician. Life Voltaire's ''protégé'' Charles was born in Paris as the heir of a financier who left him a large fortune and the nobility title of ...
foundered on his homosexuality. She did not follow Voltaire to the court of
Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself '' King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prus ...
but moved with him to Les Délices in Geneva and then to
Ferney Ferney-Voltaire () is a commune in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. It lies between the Jura Mountains and the Swiss border; it forms part of the metropolitan area of Geneva. It is named for Voltaire, ...
, where they lived as a couple (though Voltaire was in love with her, they never married) until Voltaire's death in 1778, on which she inherited the majority of his estate. However, preferring Paris society, she sold off the
château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...
to move back to Paris.


Sources


visitvoltaire.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mignot 1712 births 1790 deaths 18th-century people from the Republic of Geneva Voltaire