Molière

Molière, born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin in Paris in 1622, was the son of an upholsterer to the royal court and should have inherited his father's post; but at twenty-one he founded a theatre company with the actress Madeleine Béjart and others and took the stage name Molière. The company failed in Paris, he was imprisoned for debt, and for thirteen years he toured the provinces with his troupe. Back in Paris, his comedies won the favour of Louis XIV and great success, but his satire of religious hypocrisy brought fierce attacks from the Church. In 1673, while playing in his own The Imaginary Invalid, he was seized on stage by a fit of coughing blood and died a few hours later. French is called 'the language of Molière' after him.