Description

Népomucène Lemercier (1771–1840) was a French poet, playwright, and member of the Académie Française, active at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. He made his mark in neo-classical theatre with tragedies such as Agamemnon(1797), which represented an attempt to renew the genre by breaking away from rigid classical rules. A supporter of the Revolution in his youth, he later adopted more moderate views under the Empire and the Restoration. He was elected to the Académie Française in 1810, succeeding Chénier. Though less famous than his contemporaries, Lemercier remains a transitional figure between classicism and romanticism.