Staal
MARGUERITE JEANNE, BARONESS DE, a French author; born in Paris, May 30, 1684, the daughter of a poor painter named Cordier, whose name she dropped for that of her mother, Delaunay. She had a sound education at the convent of Saint Louis at Rouen, and at 27 was attached to the person of the imperious and intriguing Duchesse de Maine at the little court of Sceaux. Her devotion to the interests of the duchesse brought her two years in the Bastille, where she had a love affair with the Chevalier de Menil. In 1735 she married Baron_de Staal, an officer of the Guard. Her "Mémoires" (4 vols. 1755), show intellect and observation, as well as remarkable mastery of subtle irony, and are written in a style clear, firm, and individual. Her "Complete Works" appeared at Paris in two volumes in 1821. She died in Paris, June 16, 1750.
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