Sibylle Gabrielle Marie Antoinette Riqueti de Mirabeau
Encyclopedia
Sibylle Aimée Marie-Antoinette Gabrielle de Riquetti de Mirabeau, Comtesse de Martel de Janville (16 August 1849 – 28 June 1932) was a French
writer who wrote under the pseudonym
GYP.
She was born at the château de Coëtsal near Plumergat
, in the département of the Morbihan
, in Brittany
, her father, Joseph-Arundel de Riquetti, comte de Mirabeau, 1820–1860, being the great-grandson of Victor de Riquetti, marquis de Mirabeau
(Mirabeau Père), noted 18th century economist, and grandnephew of Honoré Mirabeau the celebrated revolutionary orator. In view of her later opinions, it is interesting to remember that Sibylle was actually descended from Octave Mirabeau's reactionary younger brother, André-Boniface-Louis de Riquetti, vicomte de Mirabeau, (1754–1792) known as Mirabeau-Tonneau because of his notorious embonpoint, who famously broke his sword in front of France
's Revolutionary Assembly (where he represented the nobility of the Limousin
) while bitterly crying out: "now that The King is giving up his kingdom, a nobleman no longer needs a sword to fight for him!"
Although, in her memoires, "Gyp" stated that she had been born on August 15, which happens to have been Napoleon Bonaparte's birthday, W.Z. Silvermann, in the book listed at the bottom of this article, quotes from Sibylle de Riquetti-Mirabeau's actual birth certificate, to the effect that she had been born in the morning of August 16, 1849. In said birth certificate, as amended at her father's written request, her names are given specifically as Sibylle Aimée Marie Antoinette Gabrielle, in that order.
Sibylle's mother, the comtesse de Mirabeau, née de Gonneville (1827–1903) was also a writer, who contributed to Le Figaro
. In 1869, Sibylle married count Roger de Martel de Janville, by whom she had three children.
GYP wrote humorous sketches and novels which brazenly denounced her own fashionable society as well as the French republic's political class. She hated republicanism, populist democracy and party shenanigans, supported Boulanger
and was a fanatical anti-Semite & anti-dreyfusard
; whilst testifying at a court case in 1899 she gave her profession as "anti-Semite" rather than writer. She began with some articles in La Vie parisienne in February 1877, then in La Revue des Deux Mondes. Starting in 1880, she began to publish in book form, under the pseudonym of Gyp, a total of more than 120 works, many highly successful: Petit Bob, (1882), Les Chasseurs, Un trio turbulent, Autour du mariage (1883), Ce que femme veut (1883), Sans voiles (1885), Autour du divorce (1886), Dans le train (1886), Mademoiselle Loulou (1888), Bob au salon (1889), L'éducation d'un prince (1890), Passionette (1891), Oh! la grande vie (1891), Une Election à Tigre-sur-mer (1890), based on Gyp's experience supporting a boulangiste candidate, Marriage civil (1892), Ces bons docteurs (1892) De haut en bas (1893), Le Mariage de Chiffon (1894), Leurs âmes (1895), Le Cœur d'Ariane (1895), Le Bonheur de Ginette (1896), Totote (1897), Lune de miel (1898), Israel (1898), L'Entrevue (1899), Le Pays des champs (1900), Trop de chic (1900), Le Friquet (1901), La Fée (1902), Un Mariage chic (1903), Un Ménage dernier cri (1903), Maman (1904), Le Cœur de Pierrette (1905), Les Flanchards (1917), Souvenirs d'une petite fille (1927–1928), etc.
Her best-known work is probably Le Mariage de Chiffon, filmed in 1942 by Claude Autant-Lara
.
Because of her unpopular opinions, the comtesse was the victim of several attempts on her life, as well as of a sensational kidnapping.
GYP, self-styled "last of the Mirabeau", died at Neuilly-sur-Seine
on 28 June 1932
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
writer who wrote under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
GYP.
She was born at the château de Coëtsal near Plumergat
Plumergat
Plumergat is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.In September 2007, 7.2% of children in the community were enrolled in primary bilingual.-Breton language:...
, in the département of the Morbihan
Morbihan
Morbihan is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan , the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.-History:...
, in Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, her father, Joseph-Arundel de Riquetti, comte de Mirabeau, 1820–1860, being the great-grandson of Victor de Riquetti, marquis de Mirabeau
Victor de Riqueti, marquis de Mirabeau
Victor de Riquetti, marquis de Mirabeau was a French economist of the Physiocratic school. He was the father of great Honoré, Comte de Mirabeau and is, in distinction, often referred to as the elder Mirabeau....
(Mirabeau Père), noted 18th century economist, and grandnephew of Honoré Mirabeau the celebrated revolutionary orator. In view of her later opinions, it is interesting to remember that Sibylle was actually descended from Octave Mirabeau's reactionary younger brother, André-Boniface-Louis de Riquetti, vicomte de Mirabeau, (1754–1792) known as Mirabeau-Tonneau because of his notorious embonpoint, who famously broke his sword in front of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's Revolutionary Assembly (where he represented the nobility of the Limousin
Limousin (province)
Limousin is one of the traditional provinces of France around the city of Limoges. Limousin lies in the foothills of the western edge of the Massif Central, with cold weather in the winter...
) while bitterly crying out: "now that The King is giving up his kingdom, a nobleman no longer needs a sword to fight for him!"
Although, in her memoires, "Gyp" stated that she had been born on August 15, which happens to have been Napoleon Bonaparte's birthday, W.Z. Silvermann, in the book listed at the bottom of this article, quotes from Sibylle de Riquetti-Mirabeau's actual birth certificate, to the effect that she had been born in the morning of August 16, 1849. In said birth certificate, as amended at her father's written request, her names are given specifically as Sibylle Aimée Marie Antoinette Gabrielle, in that order.
Sibylle's mother, the comtesse de Mirabeau, née de Gonneville (1827–1903) was also a writer, who contributed to Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
. In 1869, Sibylle married count Roger de Martel de Janville, by whom she had three children.
GYP wrote humorous sketches and novels which brazenly denounced her own fashionable society as well as the French republic's political class. She hated republicanism, populist democracy and party shenanigans, supported Boulanger
Boulanger
Several notable persons share the very typical French/Francophone surname Boulanger which is the equivalent of the English surname Baker, of the Italian surname Panettiere, etc.:...
and was a fanatical anti-Semite & anti-dreyfusard
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair was a political scandal that divided France in the 1890s and the early 1900s. It involved the conviction for treason in November 1894 of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a young French artillery officer of Alsatian Jewish descent...
; whilst testifying at a court case in 1899 she gave her profession as "anti-Semite" rather than writer. She began with some articles in La Vie parisienne in February 1877, then in La Revue des Deux Mondes. Starting in 1880, she began to publish in book form, under the pseudonym of Gyp, a total of more than 120 works, many highly successful: Petit Bob, (1882), Les Chasseurs, Un trio turbulent, Autour du mariage (1883), Ce que femme veut (1883), Sans voiles (1885), Autour du divorce (1886), Dans le train (1886), Mademoiselle Loulou (1888), Bob au salon (1889), L'éducation d'un prince (1890), Passionette (1891), Oh! la grande vie (1891), Une Election à Tigre-sur-mer (1890), based on Gyp's experience supporting a boulangiste candidate, Marriage civil (1892), Ces bons docteurs (1892) De haut en bas (1893), Le Mariage de Chiffon (1894), Leurs âmes (1895), Le Cœur d'Ariane (1895), Le Bonheur de Ginette (1896), Totote (1897), Lune de miel (1898), Israel (1898), L'Entrevue (1899), Le Pays des champs (1900), Trop de chic (1900), Le Friquet (1901), La Fée (1902), Un Mariage chic (1903), Un Ménage dernier cri (1903), Maman (1904), Le Cœur de Pierrette (1905), Les Flanchards (1917), Souvenirs d'une petite fille (1927–1928), etc.
Her best-known work is probably Le Mariage de Chiffon, filmed in 1942 by Claude Autant-Lara
Claude Autant-Lara
Claude Autant-Lara , was a French film director and later Member of the European Parliament .-Biography:...
.
Because of her unpopular opinions, the comtesse was the victim of several attempts on her life, as well as of a sensational kidnapping.
GYP, self-styled "last of the Mirabeau", died at Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine
Neuilly-sur-Seine is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Although Neuilly is technically a suburb of Paris, it is immediately adjacent to the city and directly extends it. The area is composed of mostly wealthy, select residential...
on 28 June 1932
Further reading
- Silverman, Willa Z. (1995) The Notorious Life of Gyp - Right-Wing Anarchist in Fin-de-Siècle France. Oxford University Press, ISBN 9780195087543