VOLTAIRE. 69 



Cirey, in these various pursuits of philosophy, of his- 

 tory, of poetry. But some important incidents in 

 Voltaire's life, beside his literary successes, happened 

 during his intimacy with the Du Chatelets. His only 

 sister, of whom he appears to have been fond, had 

 died while he was in England, leaving a son and two 

 daughters. Of these, now grown up, he took a parental 

 care, and exerted himself to marry them suitably. 

 One, in 1737, married M. Denis, a captain in the 

 Regiment de Champagne, who died some years after 

 (1744), and his widow ultimately came to live with 

 her uncle, and passed nearly thirty years under his 

 roof. Her sister married, some years later, a M. de 

 Fontaine. During the same period of his residence 

 at Cirey, the Prince Royal of Prussia, afterwards 

 Frederick II., courted his acquaintance by letter, and 

 began a correspondence of mutual compliment and 

 even veneration, which lasted till he became king at 

 his father's death, in 1 740. At that time he made a 

 fruitless attempt to make Voltaire fix his residence at 

 Berlin, and would have almost let him dictate his 

 own terms ; but as long as Madame du Chatelet 

 lived, these offers were frankly and peremptorily re- 

 fused. Voltaire being near Brussels, the King, who 

 happened to be in that neighbourhood soon after his 

 accession, proposed coming to wait upon the poet ; but, 

 being prevented by a severe ague, Voltaire went to 

 him, and had his first interview while the fit was upon 

 the royal patient in bed. He undertook to publish for 

 him his first work, the ' Anti-Machiavel/ But unfor- 

 tunately, while it was passing through the press, the 

 death of Charles VI. left his daughter Maria Theresa 



