Louise Adelgunde Victorie Gottsched (1713–1762)

Luise Gottsched, née Kulmus, was considered one of Europe's leading intellects in her day. At age 16, she began a relationship with Johann Christoph Gottsched, a professor of poetry at the University of Leipzig. He tutored Luise in the Enlightenment ideals. They married in 1735, after which she assisted him in producing his Dictionary of the German Language & Model Grammar to disseminate his literary ideas. She also translated the works of British and French authors that exemplified his theories. Luise wrote birthday odes to several important ladies, including the Empress Anna Ivanovna of Russia, but she was best-known for her three comic plays. The most famous of these was Die Pietisterey im Fischbein-Rocke (Piety in a Hoop Skirt, 1736), which was banned in several cities. Luise also translated into German nine volumes of The Spectator between 1739 and 1743, the verses of Alexander Pope, including "The Rape of the Lock," and works by the French salonniere Madame de Lambert.