Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein (1766 –1817), commonly known as Madame de Staël was a French woman of letters and political theorist of Genevan origin. She was a voice of moderation in the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era up to the French Restoration for many years she lived as an exile – firstly during the Reign of Terror and later due to personal persecution by Napoleon. In exile she became the centre of the Coppet group with her unrivalled network of contacts across Europe.
