Simon Tyssot de Patot
Simon Tyssot de Patot (1655–1738) was a French writer and poet during the
Age of Enlightenment who penned two very important, seminal works in
fantastic literature. Tyssot was born in London of French
Huguenot parents. He was brought up in
Rouans, moved to
Delft (1662),
Heusden (1676–1679) and
Den Bosch, but spent most of his adult life in
Deventer in the Netherlands, where he taught French and was professor of mathematics at the city's (1690 and 1699). He had probably met
John Locke in the 1680s and almost certainly knew the Irish deist
John Toland, who lived at
The Hague in 1708–10. His life proceeded relatively uneventfully until 1727, when at the age of 72 the publication of his "Lettres choisies" caused a scandal. He was accused of
spinozism, irreligious and immoral views. Attempts to clear his name failed, he was dismissed from his post as professor and left the
Hanseatic town. He died in 1738 in
IJsselstein.
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