The "Mercure de France" was a French gazette and literary magazine first published from 1672 to 1724 (with an interruption in 1674-1677) under the title "Mercure galant" (sometimes spelled "Mercure gallant") (1672-1674) and "Nouveau Mercure galant" (1677-1724). This article is a general introduction to French literature For detailed information on French literature in specific historic periods see the separate historical articles in the Medieval French literature is for the purpose of this article Literature written in Oïl languages (particularly Old French and early Middle For more information on historical developments in this period see Renaissance, History of France, and Early Modern France. French literature of the 17th century &mdashthe so-called Grand Siècle &mdashspans the reigns of Henry IV of France, the Regency of Marie de Medici French literature of the 18th century usually refers to the literature written between 1715, the year of the death of King Louis XIV of France, and 1798 the year French literature of the nineteenth century is for the purpose of this article literature written in French from (roughly 1799 to 1900 French literature of the twentieth century is for the purpose of this article literature written in French from (roughly 1895 to 1990 Contemporary French literature is French literature roughly from the 1990s to Today. Chronological list of French language authors (regardless of nationality by date of birth This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. A literary magazine is a Periodical devoted to Literature in a broad sense Year 1724 ( MDCCXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a The title was changed to "Mercure de France" in 1724. The gazette was briefly suppressed from 1811 to 1815 and ceased publication in 1825. Year 1811 ( MDCCCXI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1815 ( MDCCCXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1825 ( MDCCCXXV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common The name was revived in 1890 for both a literary review and (in 1894) a publishing house initially linked with the symbolist movement. Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century Art movement of French and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts Since 1995 the "Mercure de France" has been part of the Éditions Gallimard publishing group. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Éditions Gallimard is one of the leading French Publishers of books

The "Mercure de France" should not be confused with another literary magazine, the "Mercure du XIXe siècle" (1823-1830). The " Mercure du XIXe siècle " (sometimes listed as "Mercure français du XIXe siècle" was a French Literary magazine published from Year 1823 ( MDCCCXXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common For the game see 1830 (board game. Year 1830 ( MDCCCXXX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display

The original "Mercure galant" and "Mercure de France"

The "Mercure galant" was founded by the writer Jean Donneau de Visé in 1672. Jean Donneau de Visé (1638 - 1710 was a French journalist royal historian ("historiographe du roi" playwright and publicist The name refers to the god Mercury, the messenger of the gods; the title also echos the "Mercure françoys" which was France's first literary gazette, founded in 1611 by the Paris bookseller J. "Alipes" redirects here For the Centipede Genus, see Alipes (centipede. Richer. The magazine's goal was to inform elegant society about life in the court and intellectual/artistic debates; the gazette (which appeared irregularly) featured poems, anecdotes, news (marriages, gossip), theater and art reviews, songs, and fashion reviews, and it became fashionable (and sometimes scandalous) to be mentioned in its pages. Publication stopped in 1674, but began again as a monthly with the name "Nouveau Mercure galant" in 1677.

The Mercure galant was a significant development in the history of journalism (it was the first gazette to report on the fashion world (DeJean, 47)) and played a pivotal role in the dissemination of news about fashion, luxury goods, etiquette and court life under Louis XIV to the provinces and abroad. Early years Birth and ancestry Louis XIV was born in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye on September 5 1638 and bore the Heir apparent In the 1670s, articles on the new season's fashions were also accompanied with engravings (DeJean, 63; see this work for an extensive analysis of the Mercure galant's mediatization of styles and fashion).

The gazette was frequently denigrated by authors of the period. The name "Mercure galant" was used by the playwright Edmé Boursault for one of his plays critical of social pretensions; when Donneau de Visé complained, Boursault retitled his play "Comédie sans titre" ("Play without a title"). Edmé Boursault (October 1638 - September 15, 1701) was a French Dramatist and miscellaneous writer born at Mussy l'Evéque now

The gazette played an important role in the "Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns", a debate on whether the arts and literature of the 17th century had achieved more than the illustrious writers and artists of antiquity, which would last until the beginning of the eighteenth century. The quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns (querelle des Anciens et des Modernes was a literary and artistic quarrel that heated up in the early 1690s and shook Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle and the "Mercure galant" joined the "Moderns". Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle, also referred to as Bernard le Bouyer de Fontenelle ( 11 February 1657 &ndash 9 January 1757) was Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux was pushed into the role of champion of the "Anciens", and Jean Racine, Jean de La Fontaine and Jean de La Bruyère (who is famous for a jibe against the gazette: "le Mercure. Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux ( November 1 1636 - March 13, 1711) commonly called Boileau, was a French Poet and Jean Racine ( ( December 22, 1639 &ndash April 21, 1699) was a French Dramatist, one of the "big three" of Jean de La Bruyère (ʒɑ̃dəlabʁyˈjɛʁ in French ( August 16 1645 – May 10, 1696) was a French Essayist and . . est immédiatement au dessous de rien" ["the Mercure. . . is immediately below nothing"]) took his defense.

The periodical eventually became a financial success and the uncontested arbiter of literary taste and the paper of record for news about the court and court society for subscribers in the provinces; it also brought Donneau de Visé comfortable revenues.

Thomas Corneille was a frequent contributor to the gazette. Thomas Corneille ( August 20, 1625 - December 8, 1709) was a French Dramatist. The Mercure continued to be published after Donneau de Visé's death in 1710. Year 1710 ( MDCCX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar or a Common year In 1724 its title was changed to "Mercure de France" and it developed a semi-official character with a governmentally appointed editor (profits were invested into pensions for writers). Year 1724 ( MDCCXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Jean-François de la Harpe was the editor in chief for 20 years; he also collaborated with Jacques Mallet du Pan. Jean-François de La Harpe ( November 20 1739 &ndash February 11 1803) was a French Playwright, writer and Critic Jacques Mallet du Pan ( 1749 - May 10, 1800) French Journalist, of an old Huguenot family was born near Geneva Other significant editors and contributors include: Marmontel, Raynal, Chamfort and Voltaire. Guillaume Thomas François Raynal ( April 12, 1711 &ndash March 6, 1796) was a French Writer. Nicolas Chamfort (April 6 1741, Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne France - April 13, 1794, Paris) was a French François-Marie Arouet ( 21 November 1694 30 May 1778) better known by the Pen name Voltaire, was a French

Right before the revolution, management was handed over to Charles-Joseph Panckoucke. Charles-Joseph Panckoucke ( Lille, 26 November 1736 - 19 December 1798) was a French writer and publisher, notable During the revolutionary era, the title was changed briefly to "Le Mercure français". Napoleon stopped its publication in 1811, but the review was resurrected in 1815. Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe. Year 1811 ( MDCCCXI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1815 ( MDCCCXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The review was last published in 1825. Year 1825 ( MDCCCXXV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common

The modern "Mercure de France"

History

At the end of the 19th century, the name "Mercure de France" was revived by Alfred Vallette. Alfred Vallette (1858 - 1935 was a French Man of letters. He founded (in 1890 and edited the Le Mercure de France, a Symbolist Vallette was closely linked to a group of writers associated with Symbolism who regularly met at the café "la Mère Clarisse" in Paris (rue Jacob), and which included: Jean Moréas, Émile Raynaud, Pierre Arène, Remy de Gourmont, Alfred Jarry, Albert Samain and Charles Cros. Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century Art movement of French and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city Jean Moréas (born Ioannis A Papadiamontopoulos, Ιωάννης Α Remy de Gourmont ( April 4, 1858 - September 27, 1915) was a French Symbolist poet Novelist and influential Alfred Jarry ( 8 September 1873 &ndash 1 November 1907) was a French Writer born in Laval, Mayenne Albert Victor Samain ( April 3, 1858 &mdash August 18, 1900) was a French poet and writer of the Symbolist school Charles Cros ( October 1 1842 - August 9, 1888) was a French poet and Inventor. The first edition of the review appeared on January 1, 1890. Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Over the next decade, the review achieved critical success, and poets such as Stéphane Mallarmé and José-Maria de Heredia published original works in it. Stéphane Mallarmé (malaʁ'me ( March 18, 1842 – September 9, 1898) whose real name was Étienne Mallarmé, was a French José-Maria de Heredia (in Spanish: José María de Heredia, November 22, 1842 - October 3, 1905) Cuban born The review became bimonthly in 1905. Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting

In 1889, Alfred Vallette married the novelist Rachilde whose novel Monsieur Vénus was condemned on moral grounds. Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Rachilde was the nom de plume of Marguerite Vallette-Eymery a French author who was born February 11, 1860 in Périgueux, Périgord Rachilde was a member of the editorial committee of the review until 1924 and her personality and works did much to publicize the review. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Rachilde held a salon on Tuesdays, and these "mardis du Mercure" would become famous for the authors who attended. A salon is a gathering of stimulating people of quality under the roof of an inspiring hostess or host partly to amuse one another and partly to refine their taste and increase their knowledge through

Like other reviews of the period, the "Mercure" also began to publish books (beginning in 1894). Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Along with works by symbolists, the "Mercure" brought out the first French translations of Friedrich Nietzsche, the first works of André Gide, Paul Claudel, Colette and Guillaume Apollinaire and the poems of Tristan Klingsor. Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (October 15 1844 August 25 1900 ( was a nineteenth-century German philosopher and classical philologist Paul Claudel ( 6 August 1868 &ndash 23 February 1955) was a French Poet, Dramatist and Diplomat, Colette was the pen name of the French Novelist Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette ( January 28 1873 &ndash August 3 Guillaume Apollinaire (in French ɡijom apɔliˈnɛʁ ( August 26, 1880 &ndash November 9, 1918) was a French Poet Tristan Klingsor, birth name ( Arthur Justin) Léon Leclère (born Lachapelle-aux-Pots Oise department, 8 August 1874 died Paris, Later publications include works by: Henri Michaux, Pierre Reverdy, Pierre-Jean Jouve, Louis-René des Forêts, Pierre Klossowski, André du Bouchet, Georges Séféris, Eugène Ionesco and Yves Bonnefoy. Henri Michaux ( May 24, 1899 - October 18, 1984) was a highly idiosyncratic Belgian Poet, Writer and painter Pierre Reverdy ( 13 September 1889 - 17 June 1960) was a French poet associated with Surrealism and Cubism. Pierre Jean Jouve (1887 - 1976 was a French writer novelist and poet Pierre Klossowski ( August 9, 1905 — August 12, 2001) was a French writer translator and artist André du Bouchet ( April 7 1924 – April 19 2001) was a French Poet. Eugène Ionesco, born Eugen Ionescu ( November 26, 1909 – March 28, 1994 Yves Bonnefoy (born June 24 1923 is a French poet and essayist

With the death of Vallette in 1935, the management was taken over by Georges Duhamel (who had been editing the review since 1912). Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Georges Duhamel ( June 30, 1884 - April 13, 1966) was a French author born in Paris. Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting In 1938, because of Duhamel's anti-war stance, he was replaced by Jacques Bernard (in 1945, Bernard would be arrested and condemned for collaboration with the Germans). Year 1938 ( MCMXXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Jacques Bernard ( September 1, 1658 - April 27, 1718) French Theologian and publicist was born at Nions in After the war, Duhamel (who was majority stock-holder of the publishing house) appointed Paul Hartman to run the review (Hartman had participated in the resistance and clandestine publishing during the war). Paul Hartman ( March 1, 1904 – October 2, 1973) was an American dancer stage performer and Television Character

In 1958, the Éditions Gallimard publishing group bought the "Mercure de France" and Simone Gallimard was chosen as its director. Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Éditions Gallimard is one of the leading French Publishers of books In 1995, Isabelle Gallimard took over direction of the publishing house. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995

Literary Prizes

Mercure de France has won awards with the following authors:

• Salvat Etchart (Prix Renaudot 1967)
• Claude Farrigi (Prix Fémina 1975)
• Michel Butel (Prix Médicis 1977)
• Jocelyne François (Prix Fémina 1980)
• François-Olivier Rousseau (Prix Médicis et Prix Proust 1981)
• Nicolas Bréhal (Prix Valery Larbaud 1992)
• Paula Jacques (Prix Fémina 1991)
• Dominique Bona (Prix Interallié 1992)
• Andreï Makine (Prix Goncourt and Prix Médicis 1995)
• Romain Gary published his novels under the pen-name Émile Ajar (with the complicity of Simone Gallimard) which allowed him to win an unprecedented two Prix Goncourt. The prix Théophraste-Renaudot or prix Renaudot is a French Literary award which was created in 1926 by ten Art critics awaiting the The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse (today known as The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November Jocelyne François is a French writer born in Nancy in 1933 She received the Prix Femina for Joue-nous «España» in 1980 and the Erckmann-Chatrian prize The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse (today known as The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse (today known as The Prix Interallié (Interallié Prize also known simply as l' Interallié, is an annual French literary award, awarded for a novel written by a Andreï Makine (1957–) is a Russian born French author Biography Makine was born in Krasnoyarsk, Soviet Union on September The Prix Goncourt is a prize in French literature, given to the Author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year" The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November Romain Gary ( May 8 1914 – December 2 1980) was a French Novelist, Film director, World War II Romain Gary ( May 8 1914 – December 2 1980) was a French Novelist, Film director, World War II The Prix Goncourt is a prize in French literature, given to the Author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year"

References

The bulk of this article is based on the French wikipedia article, which is itself taken from the history page of the website of the Mercure de France (see external links). Additional information based on:

• DeJean, Joan. The Essence of Style: How the French Invented Fashion, Fine Food, Chic Cafés, Style, Sophistication, and Glamour. New York: Free Press, 2005 ISBN 978-0-7432-6414-3
• Harvey, Paul and J. E. Heseltine, eds. The Oxford Compagnon to French Literature. London: Oxford University Press, 1959.
• Patrick Dandrey, ed. Dictionnaire des lettres françaises: Le XVIIe siècle. Collection: La Pochothèque. Paris: Fayard, 1996.

External links

• Official site of the Mercure de France publishing company