Louis Legendre (; 1655–1733), was a French
historian.
Born at
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...
(
Normandy) to poor parents, Legendre owed the benefit of an education to
François de Harlay de Champvallon, the archbishop of his native city, whom he followed to
Paris, where he received a
canonical at
Notre Dame
Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to:
* Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France
* University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States
** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...
. He then went on to become abbot of
Clairfontaine
Clairfontaine () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Aisne department
The following is a list of the 799 communes in the French department of Aisne.
The ...
.
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. He also founded the competitive examination prize for the Paris colleges.
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Legendre, Louis
18th-century French historians
Writers from Rouen
1655 births
1733 deaths
French male non-fiction writers
19th-century French historians