Henri Estienne the Elder

Henri Estienne the Elder, also known as Henricus Stephanus, was a 16th-century Parisian printer. He was the founder of the prominent publishing family which led the publishing business in France for nearly a hundred years.

He was the scion of a noble family of Provence, but was disinherited by his father. In 1502 he decided to seek his fortune in Paris, where he married Guyonne Viart, the widow of the printer Jean Higman, and succeeded to his business, printing and selling books to the University of Paris. In 1504 he published the first book on his own; it was a Latin translation of Arstotle’s Ethica. From then until his death in 1520 Estienne published at least one hundred separate works.

Estienne left his widow with three young sons, Francois (1502-53), Robert (1503-59), and Charles (1504-64). She quickly married Estienne’s foreman, Simon de Colines (1480-1546), who ran the family business until Robert was able to take over in 1526.