VOLTAIRE
1694-1778

Early Life / Education

Before Voltaire was born his father migrated to the capital of Poitou and proposed to Voltairešs mother. Voltaire was born in Paris on November 21st, 1694. His parents named him Francois-Marie Arouet. When he was born he was not expected to live. After 2 years he regained his strength while he was under the care of a nurse. Having grown up around upper classes he displayed his poetic gifts as a child. When he was 10 he was sent to an exclusive Jesuit boarding school for boys. During his stay at the school he became anti-catholic denying the religious authority. Voltaire developed a philosophy which involved the belief that God created the world but does not directly involve himself with it.

Voltaire the Writer / Life Work

Voltaire liked writing. He especially liked to write shocking and scandalous poems and stories. His father thought he should become a lawyer because literary pursuits were useless. He was sent to Holland as an ambassadoršs page which was a non-paying job. There he fell in love and was planning to elope. The ambassador discovered these plans and Voltaire was sent home disgraced. His father pushed him into a job as a law clerk. Voltaire became a person who was considered a popular writer poking fun at everything and everyone of importance.

Voltaire in Prison / The End of His Life

By the age of 30 Voltaire was a well established man of letters. He produced an enormous amount of tragic plays. When Voltaire reached the age of 31 he was a wealthy man (his fortune grew over the years). In 1715 as Voltaire was becoming a celebrity King Louis the 14th died. His succession was only 5 years old so the Duke of Orleans, a regent, stepped in. This man who had questionable morals was angered when a poem surfaced about his incestuous relationship with his daughter. So the duke had Voltaire imprisoned for one year at the Bastille prison. When released in the spring of 1718 his condition was to leave Paris. This was Voltairešs first taste of exile, a punishment he would receive through out his life. His second term in prison for a couple weeks, was due to a quarrel he had with him a young Nobel Man. In neither instance was he given a trial or allowed to produce a defence. For the rest of his life, he was forced to live in perpetual exile, moving from one city to another, to avoid imprisonment or death.

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