French women helped spread the enlightenment through their salons, where French philosophes mixed with the most brilliant thinkers of Europe.
The Enlightenment, an intellectual movement that defined 18th Century Europe, shook up the traditional beliefs of higher and lower classes. Thinkers such as John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and François-Marie Arouet (also known as Voltaire) helped spread new ideas that directly challenged the aristocracies claim to superiority through birthright.
French Salons
The ideas of the Enlightenment were spread through a rather unconventional route: in the homes of elegant aristocratic ladies. The magnificent court at Versailles had become dull and stuffy as the reigning monarch, Louis XIV, grew closer to death. As a result, many ladies of the aristocracy began hosting small gatherings in their townhouses in Paris, where they could laugh and be merry without upsetting the king. By the time of Louis XV, this practice was quite common among the bourgeois as well as the elite. Invitations to these ladies salons (drawing rooms), was not based on social standing, but rather on a persons intelligence, wit and conversation. Being attractive or somewhat controversial was added bonus.
In the fashionable homes of Paris, people from the most esteemed parts of society came together for evenings of debate and conversation. Enlightened thinkers, aristocrats, wealthy members of the newly rich middle class, high ranking military officers and exotic foreigners mingled together on equal footing. This was a far cry from the stuffy, rigidly controlled French court at Versailles, where titles and social status meant everything and the smallest faux paux was tantamount to social death.
Madame Tencin
One of the most famous French hostess was a former nun, Alexandrine Tencin. Madame Tencin had a scandalous past that fascinated people. She had been the mistress of several powerful men, including Cardinal Dubois, the prime minister of France, for whom she spied and was paid a small fortune. Invitations to Madame Tencin’s salon were highly sought after. According the HRH, Princess Michael of Kent, the conversation in Madame Tencin’s salon was “…considered the most scintillating in the world.”
Madame Geoffrin
Another grand dame of Paris was Madame Geoffrin, who hosted two dinners each week, inviting the French Philosphes to share their thoughts. Madame Geoffrin was a devout Christian who did not hold with any enlightened ideas that were skeptical of God and His existence. Madame Geoffrin’s reputation was so great that she regularly corresponded with the King of Sweden and Catherine the Great of Russia. Few women were invited to the salon of Madame Geoffrin, who played hostess along with her daughter, Madame de la Ferté-Imbault. However, one beautiful young woman, Madame d’Etioles (the future Marquise de Pompadour, mistress to King Louis XV) was invited to the Wednesday night dinners. In time this future royal mistress would count such enlightened philosophes as Voltaire among her closets of friends and would become one of the greatest patrons of the Enlightenment.
The Enlightenment, Women and Society
The Enlightenment was shaped in large part by women. The French philosphes argued for more rights for women (not equal rights, mind you) and artists and writers reflected a certain degree of femininity in their works. Sentimental portraits featuring lovers and cupid were en vogue during the 18th Century, as were soft shades of pastels and ornate decors, all reflecting women’s heightened social status.
Sources:
Kent, HRH Princess Michael. Cupid and the King. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005.
Lang, Sean. European History for Dummies. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons, LTD. 2006.
Mckay, Hill, Buckler. A History of World Societies: Volume II Since 1500. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1992.
