Antoine Léonard Thomas
Illustration — DUPLESSIS Joseph Siffred: Portrait d'Antoine-Léonard Thomas Antoine Léonard Thomas (1 October 1732 – 17 September 1785) was a French poet and literary critic, best known in his time for his great eloquence, especially for éloges in praise of past luminaries. It was in recognition of this that he was elected to Académie Française. In an award-winning 1765 essay in praise of René Descartes, he penned a fuller form of the cogito in French as "Puisque je doute, je pense; puisque je pense, j'existe." With rearrangement and compaction, the passage translates to "I doubt, therefore I think, therefore I am," or in Latin, "dubito, ergo cogito, ergo sum." He was born in Clermont-Ferrand and died aged 52 in Oullins.
Also recorded as Antoine Leonard Thomas
Antoine Léonard Thomas

After Joseph-Siffred Duplessis · photo.rmn.fr · Public domain
- Born
- 1732
- Died
- 1785
- Nationality
- France
- Occupation
- poet · literary critic · writer · philosopher
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Illustration — DUPLESSIS Joseph Siffred: Portrait d'Antoine-Léonard Thomas Antoine Léonard Thomas (1 October 1732 – 17 September 1785) was a French poet and literary critic, best known in his time for his great eloquence, especially for éloges in praise of past luminaries. It was in recognition of this that he was elected to Académie Française. In an award-winning 1765 essay in praise of René Descartes, he penned a fuller form of the cogito in French as "Puisque je doute, je pense; puisque je pense, j'existe." With rearrangement and compaction, the passage translates to "I doubt, therefore I think, therefore I am," or in Latin, "dubito, ergo cogito, ergo sum." He was born in Clermont-Ferrand and died aged 52 in Oullins.
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• Illustration — Éloge de René Descartes (1765) *

Antoine Léonard Thomas, BOYER 2426 - -Antoine-Léonard Thomas
Ambroise Tardieu · This document can be found Overnia, the digital heritage library in Clermont-Ferrand. It is under the identifier 1068. English | français | українська | +/−
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1732
Antoine Léonard Thomas born at Clermont-Ferrand.
1785
Antoine Léonard Thomas died at Oullins.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Paris, in-12, et 1801
- 2.Paris, 1758, in-12.
- 3.Histoire de l’Académie française depuis sa fondation jusqu’en 1830. Charpertier.
- 4.Paris, 1759, in 8°.
- 5.La Guerre de Sept ans. Librairie académique Perrin. 2015. 978-2-262-03529-7.
- 6.Paris, 1760, .
- 7.Paris, 1760 ; 1821, .
- 8.Correspondance littéraire, philosophique et critique par Grimm, Diderot, Raynal, Meister, etc. Garnier frères. 1878.
- 9.Dans la parodie de la scène de Cinna, ce vers qu’Auguste dit à Cinna et à Maxime : était ainsi travesti : Or, ce nom de le Merle était un sobriquet donné au duc de Praslin. C’est pourquoi, lorsqu’il avait pris la Dangeville pour maîtresse, l’acteur Grandval qu’elle voulait conserver pour suppléant, lui répondit : Praslin, dit Marmontel, avait l'âme basse et triste; et, dans les hommes de ce caractère, l'orgueil blessé est inexorable. Mémoires de Marmontel. p 207.
- 10.Voir le récit qu'en fait Marmontel dans ses Mémoires, p. 218
- 11.Lettres à Julie écrites du donjon de Vincennes. Plon-Nourrit. 1903.
- 12.Essai sur la vie de M. Thomas, de l'Académie françoise. Moutard. 1791.
- 13.Paris, 1829, in-12
- 14.Paris, 1798, ; , 1799, 2 vol. in-12.
- 15.1773, 4 vol. et in-12.
- 16.1802, 7 vol. .
- 17.Paris, 1822-23, ou 1825, 6 vol. .
- 18.Amsterdam, 1762, 1765, 1767, 2 vol. in-12.
- 19.Paris, 1788, in-12.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 11
- Essais de mémoires. Nepveu. 1824. 902192723.
- Essai sur la vie de M. Thomas, de l’Académie françoise. Moutard. 1791.
- Annales littéraires. Maradan. 1818.
- Nouvelle Biographie générale depuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu’à nos jours. Firmin Didot frères. 1866.
- Lycée.
- Histoire de l’Académie française depuis sa fondation jusqu’en 1830. Charpentier. 1857.
- Notice sur Thomas. Verdière. 1825.
- Une correspondance inédite de Voltaire. S.n. 1898.
- Cours de littérature française. Didier. 1840.
- Antoine Léonard Thomas (1732-1785). É. Champion. 1924. 496577022.
- Jean-Louis Marie du Gas de Bois Saint-Just, tome 3 de : Paris, Versailles et les provinces, au dix huitième siècle ..., Volume 3, 1817,
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Wikidata, structured authority record Q301210: Antoine Léonard ThomasWikimedia Foundation
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Books
38,661 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Antoine HéroetAuthor
- Antoine Houdar de La MotteAuthor
- Antoine LavoisierAuthor
- Antoine Le Métel d'OuvilleAuthor
- Antoine MeyerAuthor
- Antoine Ó RaifteiriAuthor
- Antoine PolAuthor
- Antoine van ZyllAuthor
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