Louis Ulbach

Louis Ulbach (7 March 1822 – 16 April 1889) was a French novelist, essayist and journalist. He published seventy-six volumes, wrote three plays, and wrote numerous articles and political or biographical pamphlets. His romantic novels were compared to the works of Émile Zola and Alphonse Daudet.

He edited the Revue de Paris and published La Cloche, which was suppressed in 1869 for its hostility to the Second French Empire. He was imprisoned twice for his publication of La Cloche. He was a leader in the movement for perpetual copyright to authors.

In 1877, he was awarded the cross of the Legion of Honour.

Personal life

Ulbach was born at Troyes in the department of Aube. He was described as a genial, intelligent, witty, and interesting man who was a notable conversationalist. He was a member of Jules Simon's salon with Edmond François Valentin About and other Frenchmen to discuss literary, political, and other current events. He was a popular leader within literary circles.

When Elisabeth of Wied, the Queen of Romania, was a girl, Ulbrach was said to have been her literary professor in Paris. Louis Ulbach was credited with "introducing the world to the pleasant pretty book of the Queen of Romania, the 'Pensees d'une Reine'." He was presented to the Queen at summer residence when he traveled to Sinaia in Romania. Upon seeing her works that were written in French, he encouraged her to publish a selection.

He died in Paris on 16 April 1889, after a long illness.

Career and politics

He was encouraged to take up a literary career by Victor Hugo. When he was 22, Ulbach published a volume of poetry entitled Gloriana. After he graduated from college in 1845, he founded the La Revue des Famillies publication at Troyes. He moved to Paris in 1848 and saw the French Revolution of 1848. He took rank among the Republicans, and opposed the Empire as a Liberal.