Louis de Montfort

Montfort's birthplace in Montfort-sur-Meu

He was born in 1673 in Montfort-sur-Meu, the eldest surviving child of eighteen born to Jean-Baptiste and Jeanne Robert Grignion. His father was a notary. Louis-Marie passed most of his infancy and early childhood in Iffendic, a few kilometers from Montfort, where his father had bought a farm. At the age of 12, he entered the Jesuit College of St Thomas Becket in Rennes, where his uncle was a parish priest.[2]

At the end of his ordinary schooling, he began his studies of philosophy and theology, still at St Thomas in Rennes. Listening to the stories of a local priest, the Abbé Julien Bellier, about his life as an itinerant missionary, he was inspired to preach missions among the very poor. Bellier was propagating among his students a consecration and entrustment to Mary.[3][4] Under the guidance of Bellier and other priests, de Montfort began to develop his strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

19th century depiction of St Sulpice where Montfort had earlier studied for the priesthood

He was then given the opportunity, through a benefactor, to go to Paris to study at the renowned Seminary of Saint-Sulpice[5] towards the end of 1693. When he arrived in Paris, it was to find that his benefactor had not provided enough money for him, so he lodged in a succession of boarding houses, living among the very poor, in the meantime attending the Sorbonne University for lectures in theology. After less than two years, he became very ill and had to be hospitalized, but survived his hospitalization and the blood letting that was part of his treatment at the time.

Upon his release from the hospital, to his surprise he found himself with a place reserved at the Little Saint-Sulpice, which he entered in July 1695. Saint-Sulpice had been founded by Jean-Jacques Olier, one of the leading exponents of what came to be known as the French school of spirituality.[3] Given that he was appointed the librarian, his time at Saint-Sulpice gave him the opportunity to study most of the available works on spirituality and, in particular, on the Virgin Mary's place in the Christian life. This later led to his focus on the Holy Rosary and his acclaimed book the Secret of the Rosary.

He was ordained a priest in June 1700,[5] and assigned to Nantes. His great desire was to go to the foreign missions, preferably to the new French colony of Canada, but his spiritual director advised against it. His letters of this period show that he felt frustrated from the lack of opportunity to preach as he felt he was called to do.

In November 1700 he joined the Third Order of the Dominicans and asked permission not only to preach the rosary, but also to form rosary confraternities.[7] He began to consider the formation of a small company of priests to preach missions and retreats under the standard and protection of the Blessed Virgin. This eventually led to the formation of the Company of Mary. At around this time, when he was appointed the chaplain of the hospital of Poitiers, he first met Marie Louise Trichet. That meeting became the beginning of Marie Louise's 34 years of service to the poor.

Desiring to be a missionary, Montfort made a pilgrimage to Rome to ask the advice of Pope Clement XI.[3] The Pope recognized his real vocation and, telling him there was plenty of scope for its exercise in France, sent him back with the title of Apostolic Missionary.[8] On his return from his long pilgrimage to Rome, Montfort made a retreat at Mont Saint Michel "to pray to this archangel to obtain from him the grace to win souls for God, to confirm those already in God's grace, and to fight Satan and sin".[6] These occasions gave him time to think, contemplate and write.

For several years he preached in missions from Brittany to Nantes. As his reputation as a missioner grew, he became known as "the good Father from Montfort". At Pontchateau he attracted hundreds of people to help him in the construction of a huge Calvary. However, on the very eve of its blessing, the Bishop, having heard it was to be destroyed on the orders of the King of France under the influence of members of the Jansenist school, forbade its benediction. It is reported that upon receiving this news, he simply said, "Blessed be God."[2]

Depiction of Montfort with Marie Louise Trichet, at the Daughter of the Wisdom congregation, 19th century

He left Nantes and the next several years were extraordinarily busy for him. He was constantly occupied in preaching missions, always walking between one and another. Yet he found time also to write: his True Devotion to Mary,[9] The Secret of Mary[10] and the Secret of the Rosary, rules for the Company of Mary and the Daughters of Wisdom, and many hymns. His missions made a great impact, especially in the Vendée.

The heated style of his preaching was regarded by some people as somewhat strange and he was poisoned once.[2] Although it did not prove fatal, it caused his health to deteriorate. Yet he continued, undeterred. He went on preaching and established free schools for the poor boys and girls.

Statue of Louis de Montfort at Saint Peter's Basilica

• "God Alone": was the motto of Saint Louis and is repeated over 150 times in his writings.
• The Incarnation: "The Incarnation of the Word is for him the absolute central reality."[1]
• Love of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Fidelity to the Cross
• Missionary Zeal[12]

1. Letters of St. Louis Marie

2. The Love of Eternal Wisdom

3. Letter to the Friends of the Cross

4. The Admirable secret of the Rosary

5. Methods for Saying the Rosary

6. The Secret of Mary

7. True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin

8. Prayer for Missionaries

9. Manuscript Rule of the Company of Mary

10. Letter to the Members of the Company of Mary

11. The "Wisdom Cross" of Poitiers

12. Original Rule of the Daughters of Wisdom

13. Letter to the Inhabitants of Montbernage

14. Rules for Various Groups

15. The Will of St. Louis Marie

16. Morning and Night Prayers

Part of a series on the
Mariology of the Catholic Church
Virgo by Josef Moroder-Lusenberg
Overview Prayers Antiphons Hymns to Mary Devotional practices Saints Societies Consecrations and entrustments Veneration
Prayers Angelus As a Child I Loved You Fátima prayers Flos Carmeli Hail Mary Hail Mary of Gold Immaculata prayer Magnificat Mary, Mother of Grace Mary Our Queen Memorare Sub tuum praesidium
Antiphons Alma Redemptoris Mater Ave maris stella Ave Regina caelorum Salve Regina
Hymns to Mary Hail Queen of Heaven, the Ocean Star Immaculate Mary Avé de Fátima Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming O sanctissima Regina Caeli Stabat Mater
Devotional practices Acts of Reparation Consecration to Mary First Saturdays Rosary Seven Joys of the Virgin Seven Sorrows of Mary Three Hail Marys
Movements and societies Sodality of Our Lady Congregation of Marian Fathers Company of Mary (Montfort) Marianists (Society of Mary) Marist Fathers Marist Brothers Schoenstatt Movement Legion of Mary World Apostolate of Fátima (Blue Army) Mariological Society Our Lady's Rosary Makers Marian Movement of Priests Fatima Family Apostolate Queen of Angels Foundation
Apparitions Approved by the Pope Aparecida Banneux Beauraing Fátima Guadalupe La Salette Laus Lourdes Miraculous Medal Pontmain
Key Marian feast days Mother of God (1 January) Annunciation (25 March) Assumption (15 August) Immaculate Conception (8 December)
Catholicism portal

While the saint is best known for his spiritual writings, he was also a poet and during his missions managed to compose more than 20,000 verses of hymns.[22] Montfort's hymns and canticles were, for the most part, meant to be sung in village churches and in the homes of the poor. Some authors argue that a reading of Saint Louis's hymns is essential for an understanding of him as a man and for appreciating his approach to spirituality.[23]

Based on the analysis of Bishop Hendrik Frehen of the Company of Mary, Montfortian hymns fall into two major categories: "inspired" and "didactic." The inspired canticles flow spontaneously, on the occasion of a pilgrimage to a Marian shrine, or on the occasion of a joyful celebration. The didactic hymns took more effort and time to compose, and focus on instructional and informative qualities: they teach the audience through the use of a moral and a theme. After Montfort's death, the Company of Mary (which continued his work of preaching parish renewals) made great use of his hymns and used them as instruments of evangelization.

He is also said to have carved at least three statues depicting the Madonna and Child.[24]

Statue of Montfort at the basilica of Notre-Dame-de-Bonne-Nouvelle, Rennes

There are more than a hundred biographies written of Montfort. They differ in how they reflect the ecclesial and cultural milieu within which each was written.

The first four biographies of Montfort, by Grandet, Blain, Besnard, and Picot de Clorivières, were all written in the eighteenth century. They reflect the hagiographical method current then—the devotional biography. Such an approach reflected little of the critical sensibility that had dominated most of the seventeenth century through the works of the Bollandists, the memorialists of Port-Royal, and Jean de Launoy. They sought to edify, praise, eulogize, and idealize. Such early biographies are filled with anachronism, incoherence, and over-generalization. Despite such limitations, Montfort's early biographers provide valuable material. They have preserved eyewitness accounts and original documents, and they offer a solid historical foundation for reconstructing many of the truths of Montfort's life.[26]

The nineteenth century's "romanticized" conception of history influenced hagiography in two main ways. 1) Although a biography should relive the outer events of a saint's past, it was more important to describe the interior drama of his soul. 2) The nineteenth-century biographies of Montfort reflect this historiographic orientation. Two biographies were prepared for the Montfort's beatification, one by Fonteneau and the other by Persiani. The latter is almost a translation of the former (1887). They limited themselves to recounting the events that took place and did not go into Montfort's psychology. On the other hand, Pauvert (1875) published a collection of Montfort's unpublished letters and established a chronology of the first years of his priesthood. A. Crosnier's biography (1927) was also influenced by nineteenth-century romanticism. Just before Montfort's canonization appeared De Luca (1943). The author took into account the literary and spiritual milieu of seventeenth-century France and attempted to introduce his readers to Montfort's spiritual life, pointing out "phases" in Montfort's growth and development.[26]

Of the different genres of biography that purport to describe the events of someone's life, the "realistic" biography is popular with some today. Such a method is apparent in the four works dedicated by Louis Perouas to Grignion de Montfort (1966, 1973, 1989, 1990). The author separated himself from his predecessors by describing Montfort, his life, and his pastoral work using a historical-critical and psycho-sociological approach. Perouas held that the Breton saint's path was a "tormented journey" because he had difficulty dealing with a strained relationship with his father, who was known for his violent temper. His long and arduous journey toward a balanced life came to a "certain maturation for Father de Montfort when he was in his forties." Generally more acceptable than Perouas’ Freudian psychological interpretation is his understanding of Montfort's ministry in the context of the sociological and pastoral realities of his times.[26]

• Brothers of Christian Instruction of St Gabriel
• Company of Mary
• Daughters of Wisdom
• Marie Louise Trichet
• Saint Louis de Montfort's Prayer to Jesus
• St. Gabriel's Secondary School
• Montfort Secondary School
• Legion of Mary

• de Montfort, Louis. Preparation for Total Consecration according to the Method of St. Louis de Montfort. Bay Shore NY: Montfort Publications, 2001.
• de Montfort, Louis. God Alone: The Collected Writings of St. Louis Marie De Montfort Montfort Publications, 1995 ISBN 0-910984-55-7
• Doherty, Eddie. Wisdom's Fool: A biography of St. Louis de Montfort. Bay Shore NY: Montfort Publications, 1993.
• Fiores, Stefano. Dictionnaire de Spiritualité Montfortaine. (1360 pag.)Novalis, 1994
• Raja Rao, Joseph. The Mystical Experience and Doctrine of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort Loyola Press, 2005, ISBN 978-88-7839-030-0
• Smith, Jr., Scott L. St. Louis de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary - New Easier-to-Read Translation, Holy Water Books, 2019, ISBN 1-95078-205-0

• DiNoia, J. Augustine. 1996, The love that never ends OSV Press ISBN 978-0-87973-852-5

• Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Missionaries of the Company of Mary" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Founded by de Montfort.
• Catholic Books including True Devotion to Mary free online
• International Marian Research Institute at the University of Dayton. The Institute, a leading center for research and scholarship on the Blessed Virgin Mary, has a vast presence in cyberspace.
• Marian Library at the University of Dayton. The Marian Library is the world's largest repository of books, periodicals, artwork, and artifacts on Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.
• Montfort Center
• "Saint Louis Marie de Montfort" article at Catholicism.org
• Montfort, Secret of Mary
• Works by or about Louis de Montfort at Internet Archive
• Works by Louis de Montfort at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)