Louis-Élisabeth de La Vergne de Tressan

Louis- Élisabeth de la Vergne, Comte de Tressan (* November 4, 1705 in Le Mans or Mons, † October 31, 1782 or 1783 in Franco Ville) was a French writer and encyclopedist.

Life

Tressan - the name under which he appeared as an author - descended from a noble family of Languedoc and received his education along with Louis XV. In 1723 he began his military career, but remained in the subsequent years some time in Rome, where he worked on the old French romances. After returning to Paris, he took his military career again. 1733 and 1734 he was involved in campaigns. He also participated in the campaigns of the war in 1741 in Flanders in part, has at times been adjutant of the king and was eventually Lieutenant General. 1750 he was also governor of French Lorraine Toul. At the court of the exiled Polish King Stanislaus I. Luneville eventually he was grand marshal. There, he was accused by the Jesuit confessor of the king, to be a follower of the philosophy; his repartee enjoyed it, especially Voltaire. After Stanislaus ' death, Tressan withdrew to the solitude of a farm in the Champagne and increasingly devoted himself to writing.

He was with Michelle de la Vergne de Tressan (* ca 1720 ) married.

Tressan maintained friendships with people such as Voltaire and Fontenelle and frequented the salon of Madame Tencin. Tressan wrote a philosophical treatise entitled Réflexions sommaires sur l' esprit, the Essai sur le fluid électrique and numerous occasional poems; Furthermore, he wrote Diderot's Encyclopédie for. In 1781 he was thanks to his translation of Ariosto 's Orlando furioso by member of the French Academy. 1782 appeared the four volumes of the Corps d' extraits de romans de chevalerie. Between 1780 and 1791, a twelve -volume complete edition of his works appeared in Paris and in the years 1822-1823 were his collected works published in ten volumes of Campenon and A. Martin.

Schiller's judgment

Friedrich Schiller wrote on March 20, 1801 in a letter to Goethe, in Tressans works find you " instead of the naturalness of emotions [ ... ] only the firm style " and " a sentimental effect", but were " a certain simplicity in the system "and a" skill in the arrangement of " pleasing.

Works (selection)

• Roland furieux. Héroïque Poème de l' Arioste ( 4 volumes, 1780)
• Essai sur le fluid electric, considere comme agent universel ( 2 volumes, 1786). Texts online:
• Le Chevalier Robert, ou Histoire de Robert surnommé le Brave (1800)
• Rose Summers, ou les Dangers de l' imprévoyance traduit ment libre de l' anglais (1805 )
• Oeuvre (8 volumes, 1822-23 )