biography
| name: |
Raynal, Guillaume Thomas, abbé de
|
pronunciation:
[raynal]
| sex:
| male
|
| lived:
| (1713–96)
|
| biography:
| Writer and propagandist, born in Saint-Geniez, SE France. After a Jesuit education he joined the order, but left it to take up writing after moving to Paris. He wrote two histories, one on the Netherlands (1747) and the other on the English parliament (1748), and edited the literary paper Mercure de France (1750–4). His chief work was a history of the European colonies in India and America (6 vols, 1770) to which Denis Diderot was one of the contributors. It was a huge success, but Raynal was forced into exile because of its anti-clerical and anti-royalist tone. He returned to Paris in 1790, renouncing radicalism and rejecting violence. Having fallen foul of the authorities, his property was confiscated and he died in poverty. |
|
|
