Jean-Baptiste de Mirabaud (1675,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

– 24 June 1760,

) was a French writer and translator.

His life and work

He studied with the

Oratorians An Oratorian is a member of one of the following religious orders: * Oratory of Saint Philip Neri (Roman Catholic), who use the postnominal letters C.O. * Oratory of Jesus (Roman Catholic) * Oratory of the Good Shepherd (Anglican) * Teologisk Orator ...

and fought at the

battle of Steenkerque The Battle of Steenkerque, also known as ''Steenkerke'', ''Steenkirk'' or ''Steinkirk'' was fought on 3 August 1692, during the Nine Years' War, near Steenkerque, then part of the Spanish Netherlands but now in modern Belgium A French force ...

in 1692. A friend of

Jean de La Fontaine Jean de La Fontaine (, , ; 8 July 162113 April 1695) was a French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his ''Fables'', which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Euro ...

, he wrote various works of literature, history and philosophy, but failed to publish them. The

Duchess of Orléans Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

(1677-1749) made him her secretary and put him in charge of her two daughters' educations. In 1724, he published a translation of ''

Jerusalem Delivered ''Jerusalem Delivered'', also known as ''The Liberation of Jerusalem'' ( it, La Gerusalemme liberata ; ), is an epic poem by the Italian poet Torquato Tasso, first published in 1581, that tells a largely mythified version of the First Crusade i ...

'' by

Torquato Tasso Torquato Tasso ( , also , ; 11 March 154425 April 1595) was an Italian poet of the 16th century, known for his 1591 poem ''Gerusalemme liberata'' (Jerusalem Delivered), in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between ...

, which brought him much admiration and led to his election two years later to the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

. In 1741, his translation of ''

Orlando Furioso ''Orlando furioso'' (; ''The Frenzy of Orlando'', more loosely ''Raging Roland'') is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was no ...

'' by

Ludovico Ariosto Ludovico Ariosto (; 8 September 1474 – 6 July 1533) was an Italian poet. He is best known as the author of the romance epic ''Orlando Furioso'' (1516). The poem, a continuation of Matteo Maria Boiardo's ''Orlando Innamorato'', describes the ...

had a more mixed reception. Becoming secrétaire perpétuel to the Académie in 1742, he left this post in 1755 when he felt age no longer allowed him to carry it out. The name of Mirabaud remains associated with that of

Baron d'Holbach Paul-Henri Thiry, Baron d'Holbach (; 8 December 1723 – 21 January 1789), was a French-German philosopher, encyclopedist, writer, and prominent figure in the French Enlightenment. He was born Paul Heinrich Dietrich in Edesheim, near Land ...

, who had his ''Système de la Nature'' published under Jean-Baptiste Mirabaud's name in 1770.

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...

, who violently condemned the Baron's work, denounced the deception thus "Alas! our good Mirabaud was not capable of writing a single page of the book of our redoutable adversary." On his death in 1760, Buffon gave him a glowing homage : "Mirabaud always joined feeling to esprit, and we liked to read him just as we liked to hear him ; but he had so little attachment to what he produced, he so feared the noise and glare, that he sacrificed those which could contribute most to his glory .Cited by , ''Histoire des quarante fauteuils de l'Académie française depuis la fondation jusqu'à nos jours, 1635-1855'', volume I, 1844, p. 294-5.

Publications

;Philosophy and history *''Sentiments des philosophes sur la nature de l'âme'' (1743). Published by Fontenelle in his ''Nouvelles libertés de penser''
Online text
*''Le Monde, son origine et son antiquité. De l'Âme et de son immortalité'' (1751). Published by César Chesneau Du Marsais and Jean-Baptiste Le Mascrier
Online text 12
*''Opinions des anciens sur les juifs'' (posthumously, 1769). Reissue : Hachette, Paris, 1972
Online text
*''Réflexions impartiales sur l'Évangile'' (posthumously, 1769). Work also attributed to baron d'Holbach
Online text
;Translations *''Jérusalem délivrée, poème héroïque du Tasse, nouvellement traduit en françois'' (2 volumes, 1724) *''Roland furieux, poème héroïque de l'Arioste, traduction nouvelle'' (4 volumes, 1741)

Notes

External links

Biographical note on the Académie française site

Portrait of Jean-Baptiste de Mirabaud. Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. Bildarchiv Austria
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mirabaud, Jean-Baptiste de 1675 births 1760 deaths Writers from Paris French translators Italian–French translators Natural philosophers Members of the Académie Française French male non-fiction writers