Henri Auguste Barbier

Henri Auguste Barbier (1805—1882), French dramatist and poet, was born in Paris on the 29th of April 1805. Inspired by the revolution of July, he poured forth a series of eager, vigorous poems, denouncing the evils of the time. They are spoken of collectively as the lambes (1831), though the designation is not strictly applicable to all. As the name suggests, they are modelled on the verse of André Chénier. They include La Curée, La Popularité, L’Idole, Paris, Dante, Quatre-vingt-treize and Varsovie. The rest of Barbier’s poems are forgotten.

He died at Nice on the 13th of February 1882. He collaborated with Leon de Wailly in the libretto of Berlioz’s opera, Benvenuto Cellini, and his works include two series of poems on the political and social troubles of Italy and England, printed in later editions of lambes et poèmes.