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Oct 6, 1565
Birth
Marie de Gournay is born to father Guillaume Le Jars (of a noble family) and mother Jeanne de Hacqueville (from a family of jurists). Her last name is really 'le Jars', but after her birth her father bought the estate of Gournay-sur-Aronde so their last name now included 'de Gournay'. The family de Gournay was a minor aristocratic family. -
Jan 1, 1578
Death of Father
At the time of her father's death, Marie de Gournay was thirteen years old. After Guillaume le Jars died, Marie and her family retired to Chateau de Gournay. This is a pivotal point in the young woman's life, as from here she began to educate herself, acting as her own tutor. -
Period: Jan 1, 1578 to
Adolescence
From her father's death to the end of adolescence, Marie de Gournay served as her own tutor. She studied poetry and French literature. Her self-education was centered on the classics and by the end of this period of her life she had become fluent in Latin and learned at least some Greek. It was somewhere around this time also that she doscovered Montaigne's essays among her philosophical reading. She soon became his devoted disciple. -
Discovered Montaigne's Works
Around this year, Marie de Gournay came across Montaigne's essays. At the time she was reading Putarch and other Stoic authors. She was fascinated by Montaigne's thoughts and became an enthusiastic follower of his. -
Meets Montaigne
In 1588, Marie de Gournay traveled to meet Montaigne in person. She was 23 years of age and he was 55. He took to her quite well, and their relationship was as one of a father and daughter. Later he was to visit her at her dwelling at Chateau de Gournay. -
Death of Mother
In 1591, Marie de Gournay's mother passed away. Meanwhile Marie found herself in rather dire financial circumstances. Shorty after this, Montaigne himself passed away, which eventually led to a solution to Marie's situation. -
Asked to Edit a Work
In 1593, Montaigne's widow asked Marie de Gournay to edit and publish the posthumous edition of Montaigne's essays. This gave her the opportunity to study his work in depth. It also gave her work. -
Essays are Published
In 1595, the new edition of Montaigne's essays was published, complete with a ong preface by Marie de Gournay herself. She would go on to edit and publish more of his works, and this event began Marie's attempts to make a living by translating, editing, and writing. -
Period: to
Marie de Gournay Makes a Living
Marie de Gournay spend the last few decades living off her work. Her ability to translate from Latin earned her a reputation as a scholar, and she wrote for Queen Margo, Henry IV of France, Marie de Médicis, Louis XIII, the marquise de Guercheville, the ministers Villeroy and Jeannin, and Richelieu. She never married and supported herself through her work, though it often earned her ridicule and criticism. -
Death
Marie de Gournay died at the age of 79. She lived a life of many accomplishments, and is considered one of Renaissance France's most active literary figures. She wrote her own works, as well, edited those of many esteemed characters in history, prided herself on being a personal friend of Montaigne, and was also a determined feminist.
