France, mother of arts, of warfare, and of laws.

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Joachim Du Bellay

1522-05-01 — 1560-01-01 · Liré

Joachim Du Bellay was a French poet and literary critic of the 16th century, a central figure of the literary movement known as La Pléiade. His most famous work, 'Défense et illustration de la langue française', is considered a fundamental manifesto for the affirmation and development of the French language as a literary vehicle. Du Bellay celebrated the beauty of his mother tongue and defended its dignity in comparison to Latin and Greek, while also exploring universal themes such as love, homeland, exile, and the transience of time in his lyrical poetry, notably in the 'Sonnets pour Hélène'.