Étienne Vigée

Who was Étienne Vigée?

Louis-Jean-Baptiste-Étienne Vigée was a French playwright and man of letters.

Born into an artistic family, he was the son of the pastellist Louis Vigée and the brother of the celebrated painter Élisabeth Vigée. He was popular in the salons for his pleasant personality and quick wit. Although employed as a secretary to the Countess of Provence, he wrote verse in praise of the French Revolution, but his enthusiasm quickly faded and he was at one point arrested as a Girondist. He would live long enough to write poetry both in praise of Napoleon and Louis XVIII.

He succeeded Sautreau de Marsy as editor of the Almanach des Muses in 1794, and replaced La Harpe at the Lycée, but had nowhere near the same success as a teacher. A skilled imitator of Dorat and Gresset, he put together several clever plays with many points of interest both in style and plotting.