Nicolas IV. Potier de Novion

Nicolas Potier de Novion (* 1618 in Paris , † September 1, 1693 in Grignon ) was a French civil servant, lawyer and member of the Académie française .

life and work

The family

Nicolas Potier belonged to the Potier family , which held high offices in Parliament . Potier's father was President au Parlement de Paris , his wife the daughter of a secretary to the king. His son Jacques Potier de Novion (1642–1709) was Commendatarabbot of L'Aumône Monastery , Bishop of Sisteron (1677–1681), then Bishop of Évreux (1681–1709). Another relative, Léon Potier, cardinal de Gesvres (1656–1744) was Archbishop of Bourges .

The person

The lawyer Nicolas Potier was Conseiller du Roi at the age of 19 and President du Parlement at 27 . In opposition to Mazarin he resigned in 1656, came back later and was from 1678 to 1689 High President of the Parliament of Paris. Then he was dismissed for presumption. Since he had not emerged literarily, he was elected to the Académie française (seat no. 19) in 1681 because of his eloquence and political opportunity. His inaugural address, which, according to the Academy, was short and not very well received, has not been preserved. In the dispute between Antoine Furetière and the academy, his attempt at mediation was unsuccessful. He retired to his estate in Thiverval-Grignon (20 km northwest of Versailles ) and died there at the age of 75.

He was a knight in the Order of the Holy Spirit and in the Order of Michael . Numerous engravings of his person exist.

literature

• Oraison fuenebre de tres haut et tres puissant seig.r M.re Nicolas Potier de Novion ch [evali] er des ordres du roy premier president du Parlem [en] t . Par Mr. Morisot.

Web links

• Information on Nicolas IV. Potier de Novion in the database of the Bibliothèque nationale de France .
• Literature by and about Nicolas IV. Potier de Novion in the SUDOC catalog (Association of French University Libraries)
• Short biography and list of works of the Académie française (French)
• Entry in Persee