Voltaire

Voltaire is actually a pen name for Francois-Marie Arouet. Born in the late 16th century, he was a famous philosopher, writer and essayist. Voltaire went to school in Paris but claimed to learn nothing but "Latin and the Stupidities." His typically critical and cynical views on society soon got him into trouble when he was sent to jail for 11 months for writing a satire of the French government. While there, he adopted the name Voltaire and wrote the play Oedipe, which would become his first theatrical success.

His quick wit and sharp tongue made him popular with French aristocrats, but Voltaire soon got in trouble with the French government again for insulting royalty. He was exiled from France and lived in England for three years, where he was entranced by the scientific discoveries made by John Locke and Isaac Newton. He wrote a book praising the English way of life and then returned to France, where his book was considered an insult. This got him exiled again.

Voltaire later lived with his friend Marquise du Chatelet in Eastern France, where they studied science together for many years. They were both heavily influenced by Newton's discoveries, and many of their experiments focused on his theories of light and gravity. After Voltaire moved back to Paris, he continued to write heated essays and papers about his beliefs. He stayed a firm believer of religious tolerance until his death at the age of 83. A critic of religion until the end, he was banned by the Church from a proper Christian burial and was snuck into the cemetery secretly by some of his comrades.