Madeleine Des Roches

Madeleine Des Roches (née Madeleine Neveu) (c. 1520 – November 1587) was a French writer of the Renaissance. She was the mother of Catherine Fradonnet, called Catherine Des Roches (December 1542 - November 1587), to whom she taught poetry, literature and ancient languages. She is a writer in the tradition of Christine de Pizan and others, working to establish a community of women writers.

Biography The first page of Des Roches' Les missiues de Mes-Dames Des Roches de Poitiers mere et fille. Madeleine Neveu married André Fradonnet, seigneur Des Roches,

Both she and her daughter died of an epidemic on the same day.

The combined output of mother and daughter—which was published collectively—comprise epistles, odes, sonnets, stanzas, epitaphs, and a few dialogues in prose and verse. In her writings, Madeleine Des Roches spoke of how her domestic activities hindered her from investing as much time as she would have wished into her literary activities. Her poems reveal a large erudition and associate knowledge with virtue.

Works Original editions: Oeuvres, Paris: Abel L'Angelier, 1578–9. Secondes Oeuvres, Poitiers: Nicolas Courtoys, 1583. Les missives de Mesdames des Roches... (in prose and verse), Paris: Abel L'Angelier, 1586.

Related works: La Puce de Madame Des Roches, 1583.

Modern editions: Les missives de Mesdames Des Roches de Poitiers mère et fille, Anne R. Larsen, editor, Geneva: Droz, 1999. Les secondes œuvres de Mesdames Des Roches de Poitiers mere et fille, Anne R. Larsen editor, Geneva: Droz, 1998. Les œuvres de Mesdames Des Roches de Poitiers mere et fille, Anne R. Larsen editor, Geneva: Droz, 1993.