Jean Salmon Macrin was a Neo-Latin poet of French nationality. His poetry sold massively well, and was thought of as quite influential during his lifetime; however his fame did not live on, and his poetry was never republished after the 16th century.

Macrin was born in Loudun

Loudun

Loudun is a commune in the Vienne department in the Poitou-Charentes region in western France.It is located south of the town of Chinon and 25 km to the east of the town Thouars...

, and retained an intimate attachment to the countryside of his youth throughout his life. Patriotism and nostalgia for his 'patria' feature as prominent themes in his poetry. His father supported him in his poetic vocation, and in his teens he was sent to Paris to study under Jacques Lefèvre d'Etaples

Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples

Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples or Jacob Faber Stapulensis was a French theologian and humanist. He was a precursor of the Protestant movement in France. The "d’Étaples" was not part of his name as such, but used to distinguish him from Jacques Lefèvre of Deventer, a less significant contemporary, a...

. There he mastered Greek and Latin, and honed his poetic art alongside Quintianus Stoa. When his studies ended, he became secretary to Antoine Bohier, and later entered Court life as tutor to the sons of René de Savoie. After the death of the latter, Macrin remained in the service of his son Honorat. The poet found that Court life was not well-suited to his temperament, and he composed little during this period. It was his marriage to Guillone Boursault ('Gelonis') that reignited his passion for poetry, and his two most famous works (the 'Epithalamiorum liber' of 1528–1531 and the 'Carminum libri quattuor' of 1530) contained many poems dedicated to her. Macrin's poetry met with great success in his later years, and he enjoyed the favour of the king, Francis I

Francis I of France

Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...

.

Macrin boasted of having been the first to introduce Catullus

Catullus

Gaius Valerius Catullus was a Latin poet of the Republican period. His surviving works are still read widely, and continue to influence poetry and other forms of art.-Biography:...

 and Horace

Horace

Quintus Horatius Flaccus , known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.-Life:...

 into French poetry. His principal Neo-Latin models were the Italians Pontano, Marullus

Marullus

Marullus may refer to:*Michael Tarchaniota Marullus, a Renaissance humanist.*a character in the tragedy Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare*Marullus, the Roman Prefect of Judea under Caligula...

, Poliziano

Poliziano

Angelo Ambrogini, commonly known by his nickname, anglicized as Politian, Italian Poliziano, Latin Politianus was an Italian Renaissance classical scholar and poet, one of the revivers of Humanist Latin...

 and Sannazaro. He was widely known as the French Horace

Horace

Quintus Horatius Flaccus , known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.-Life:...

, and his works had a great influence on vernacular poetry, especially the Pléiade

La Pléiade

The Pléiade is the name given to a group of 16th-century French Renaissance poets whose principal members were Pierre de Ronsard, Joachim du Bellay and Jean-Antoine de Baïf. The name was a reference to another literary group, the original Alexandrian Pleiad of seven Alexandrian poets and...

.

Du Bellay

Joachim du Bellay

Joachim du Bellay was a French poet, critic, and a member of the Pléiade.-Biography:He was born at the Château of La Turmelière, not far from Liré, near Angers, being the son of Jean du Bellay, Lord of Gonnor, first cousin of the cardinal Jean du Bellay and of Guillaume du Bellay.Both his parents...

, in his 'Amores Faustinae', mentions Macrin in his list of great contemporary love poets, alongside Pontano, Sannazaro, Marullus

Marullus

Marullus may refer to:*Michael Tarchaniota Marullus, a Renaissance humanist.*a character in the tragedy Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare*Marullus, the Roman Prefect of Judea under Caligula...

, Petrarch

Petrarch

Francesco Petrarca , known in English as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar, poet and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch is often called the "Father of Humanism"...

, Bèze

Bèze

Bèze is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.-Population:-External links:*...

, Tyard

Pontus de Tyard

Pontus de Tyard was a French poet and priest, a member of "La Pléiade".He was born at Bissy-sur-Fley in Burgundy, of which he was seigneur, but the exact year of his birth is uncertain. He became a friend of Antoine Héroet and Maurice Scève...

 and Baïf

Jean-Antoine de Baïf

Jean Antoine de Baïf was a French poet and member of the Pléiade.-Life:He was born in Venice, the natural son of the scholar Lazare de Baïf, who was at that time French ambassador at Venice...

.