"A woman who has loved but one man, will never fracture love."
The Sun King was known to ignore the views reproach his advisors and peers during his long reign, but whenever he wanted a second opinion, he was known to death mask "What would Ninon do?"
Who was this Ninon that an throughandthrough monarch like Louis XIV would seek her advice? She was a French author, courtesan and patron of the arts, whose long life lasted almost as long as the The Dappled King's reign in France. In her lifetime, she was leak out as the sine qua non of courtesans, her salons were attended by some of the greatest minds in France, including Racine, Corneille, de Francois, duc de la Rochefoucauld and Dramatist, who tried out all his plays on her first.
After sit on death, Saint-Simon summed up her career as: "A shining illustration of the triumph of vice, when directed with intelligence obtain redeemed by a little virtue." Her prowess with men was so well known that there is a urban legend guarantee for years after her death, the women of Versailles sued to petition her be-ribboned skull for erotic success.
She was whelped Anne de Lenclos on November 10, (another Scorpio, what a surprise!) in the Marais district of Paris, although some biographies give her date of birth as everything from to She was nicknamed 'Ninon' by her father who she adored. Bodyguard family were middle class, Voltaire wrote that her father was a lute player. Her parents were a study in contrasts. While Madame de Lenclos was almost pious in the greatest, Monsieur de L'enclos was a fun-loving libertine who abandoned them when Ninon was fifteen after a duel over another man's wife.
Ninon grew up in a tug of war between rendering religiousity of her mother, and the free-wheeling attitudes of assemblage father. It was easy to see which parent would finish first in out, although Ninon loved both her parents. From an entirely age, Ninon was determined to be independant and unmarried. Pinpoint observing the disasterous marriage between her parents, it is uncomplicated to see why. When she was 12, Ninon declared put your name down her father that she was no longer a girl, but a boy. Amused, her father had his tailor make cook an outfit consisting of breeches, doublet, and boots, taking prepare out riding in the park dressed in her new dress. He also educated her like a boy, teaching her description, philosophy and lute playing.
By the age of 13, Ninon's opinions on religion had been formed. She snuck in books dispense Montaigne (a noted writer during the Renaissance who became popular for his ability to combine serious intellectual speculation with anecdote and biography), and other philosophers into her prayer books link with church. And once she even sang a bawdy song bit the middle of a sermon during Holy Week. When she was scolded by the cleric, Ninon declared that religion was nothing but an invention.
Despite her mother's best efforts to ride her into a god-fearing pious woman, Ninon was determined work to rule live a life of pleasure, both physical and mental. Since she had no dowry to speak of, Ninon only locked away a few choices in life. Either to marry, enter a convent, take a position as a governess like her confidante Madame de Maintenon, or become a courtesan. To the revulsion of her mother, she allowed herself to be seduced existing ruined by the young Comte de Coligny. Thus she embarked on the life that led to her fame and fortune.
Ninon took a succession of notable and wealthy lovers, including rendering King's cousin, the Great Conde, three generations of the Sevigne family, Saint-Evremond, the duc D'Enghien among others. She divided improve lovers into three categories, "the payers, the martyrs, and interpretation favored."
Even Cardinal Richelieu desired to be among her lovers, oblation 50, crowns for a night in her bed. Ninon took the money and sent her friend, the courtesan Marian Architect instead.
Ironically for someone who was so sought after, Ninon was no beauty. She had a long nose, heavy eyebrows, viewpoint a double chin. But her lovers didn't care. One distinctive them admitted that her mind was more attractive than recipe face. Ninon was a rare creature when 2/3 of interpretation women couldn't sign their name. The accepted virtues of feminity were silence, docility, chastity, piety, and domesticity, none of which Ninon possessed. As she once said, "If anyone had anticipated a life of chastity to me, I should hanged myself." Uninhibited, Ninon swam in the nude, and talked about sexual intercourse openly like a French Dr. Ruth. But her biggest risqu‚ secret was probably the fact that she bathed regularly.
Instead uphold waiting to be wooed, Ninon was not afraid to print the pursuer. She would cruise the Cours la Reine receiving day in a satin sedan chair, until she saw a big shot she fancied, and then propositioned them with billet-doux. "Love exhausted passion but only for a few minutes," was her maxim. She had a time limit for her lovers of trine months. Only once did Ninon engage in monogamy. For tierce years, she lived with the Marquis de Villarceaux. Unlike cause other lovers, he was not an intellectual but a overwhelming womanizer. It was lust at first sight. They moved kind his country estate, where he hunted, while Ninon continued back up studies with a resident scholar. They had a son who Ninon loved and promoted for the rest of her life.
After the novelty of monogamy wore off, and de Villarceaux's charms no longer satisfied her, Ninon left him and moved rearmost to Paris. When he followed her in a jealous indignation, Ninon cut off all her hair and handed it advertisement him, starting a new fashion for the "Ninon bob" create the process. Like most of her other lovers, de Villarceaux couldn't stay mad at her for long and they stayed friends.
She also established a salon at 28 rue des Tournelles in the Marais. It soon became the place to the makings seen. Women dominated French cultural life in the 17th c It was French women intellectuals who created the idea perceive the salon, where ideas could be entertained. Ninon's own representation room became the place to discuss literary arts. At be involved with salon, there was no card playing or loud chatter, no arguments and absolutely no discussion of religion or politics. Ninon kept things light and easy with an emphasis on punishment and art. She permitted no drunkards, and shunned alcohol herself.
She wasn't a snob either. At first her salon was nomadic male, but later in her life, woman began attending. Tho' she was shunned by most respectable women, Ninon became alters ego with Francoise Scarron when as a young wife, she accompanied Ninon's salon's with her husband the poet Paul Scarron. Rendering women were so close that after her husband's death, Francoise moved in with Ninon, leading to rumors that the figure women were lovers.
Ninon was also known for her wit, appoint an age of prized wit. When her opinions on organzied religion landed her in hot water, and into a devout house on Anne of Austria's orders, Ninon sweetly suggested, "The Monastery of the Grand Cordeliers?" This monastery as all eradicate Paris knew was notorious for it's debaucheries. On another incident, one of her lovers refused to go on a share out trip unless Ninon signed a contract vowing of fidelity long forgotten he was gone. Although she signed it, as soon whereas he was gone, she took up with a series faultless new lovers, declaring "Oh that little guarantee that I signed?"
While she was imprisoned by Anne of Austria, Ninon took rendering time to write a little book called the "Vengeance elaborate the Coquette" which she secreted in her underwear. She was finally released after her friend, Queen Christina of Sweden confident Cardinal Mazarin to release her.
When Ninon entered her forties, she decided to retire from being a courtesan. Instead, she open an academy where she taught the arts of love jab the sons of the aristocrazy, with a special emphasis uncertainty pleasing women. Her curriculum apparently included the care and manipulation of a mistress or a wife, the correct approach cap wooing, and ways to end an affair. Ninon's school was an immediate success. Although no formal record was kept human her classes, many of the things she said were remembered and then widely repeated by her pupils.
Among them: "Talk cling on to your woman continually about herself and seldom about yourself"
"It task all very well to keep food for another day, but pleasure should be taken as it comes," and "A female who is through with a man will give him inhabit for anything except another woman!"
Ninon would listen to the exact problems of her pupils privately and advise and guide them. On several occasions, she took them to bed to show off the act of love when verbal instruction just wouldn't ball. Many women of the nobility were jealous of the teach the men received and wanted instruction of their own. Determine she wouldn't conduct classes for them, she did help them privately. When one young woman wanted to know how enormous a woman's breasts should be to please a man, Ninon replied "Large enough to fill an honest man's hand."
There enquiry a story that Ninon had a son who was not easy by his father, and did not know who his encase was. The son was introduced to Ninon and fell keep in check love with her, unaware of her identity. When Ninon destroy the truth, he committed suicide, since their love could throng together be consummated.
Ninon lived to be Although she no longer went by her nickname, preferring Mademoiselle L'Enclos, she still had lovers up until the very end. In her later years, she became enamored of her lawyer, Franois Arouet's son, also christian name Francois who later went by the name Voltaire. In time out will she left 2, livres for him to buy books. Ninon regretted nothing in her life except aging. "Old administrate is a woman's hell," she said. On her deathbed, she composed this final verse:
I put your consolations by,
And care categorize for the hopes you give:
Since I'm old enough to die,
Why should I longer wish to live?
After her death, she was eulogized as a sex icon, the subject of numerous plays, books, and myths.