Gabrielle de Coignard

Gabrielle de Coignard (1550–1586) was a French poet, born in Toulouse, France, to John de Coignard and Louise de Baulac. She married a prominent statesman, Pierre de Manescal, in 1570, and was widowed three years later, with two young daughters, Jeanne and Catherine. She turned to writing spiritual verse to help her spiritual and physical struggles.