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 (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

who spent much of his life in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

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 (; ) is the prefecture of the Cantal department, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. Geography Aurillac is at above sea level and located at the foot of the Cantal mountains in a small sedimentary basin. The city is b ...

. He became secretary to

Margaret of Valois Margaret of Valois (, 14 May 1553 – 27 March 1615), popularly known as , was List of Navarrese royal consorts, Queen of Navarre from 1572 to 1599 and Queen of France from 1589 to 1599 as the consort of Henry IV of France and III of Navarre. Ma ...

, wife of

Henry IV of France Henry IV (; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry (''le Bon Roi Henri'') or Henry the Great (''Henri le Grand''), was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 16 ...

, 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, but lacked his rival's energy. In 1634 he accompanied the Cardinal de Noailles to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and spent about two years in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. On his return to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

he made many unsuccessful efforts to obtain the favor of

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...

, 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 tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

, 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 BC – 27 November 8 BC), Suetonius, Life of Horace commonly known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). Th ...

, "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 People from Languedoc Writers from Toulouse Members of the Académie Française 17th-century French poets 17th-century French male writers French male poets