Background
Adrienne Lecouvreur was born on April 5, 1692, at Damery, Marne, the daughter of a hatter, Robert Couvreur. She had an unhappy childhood in Paris.
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Adrienne Lecouvreur
Edit ProfileCareer
Adrienne showed a natural talent for declamation and was instructed by La Grand, societaire of the Comedie Francaise, and with his help she obtained a provincial engagement.
It was not until 1717, after a long apprenticeship, that she made her Paris debut as Electre, in Crebillon's tragedy of that name, ar. d Angelique in Moliere's George Dandin.
She was on visiting and dining terms with half the court, and her salon was frequented by Voltaire and all the other notables and men of letters.
She was the mistress of Maurice de Saxe from 1721, and sold her plate and jewels to supply him with funds for his ill-starred adventures as duke of Courland.
Achievements
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Adrienne's success was so great that she was immediately received into the Comedie Frangaise, and for thirteen years she was the queen of tragedy there, attaining a popularity never before accorded an actress. She is said to have played no fewer than 1184 times in a hundred roles, of which she created twenty-two.
Personality
Quotes from others about the person
Voltaire, in a fine poem on her death, expressed his indignation at the barbarous treatment accorded to the woman whose " friend, admirer, lover " he was.
Connections
She was the mistress of Maurice de Saxe from 1721, and sold her plate and jewels to supply him with funds for his ill-starred adventures as duke of Courland. By him she had a daughter, her third, who was grandmother of the father of George Sand.
References
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Born
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Died
March 20, 1730 (aged 37) -
Nationality
France -
Ethnicity