Voltaire's role as acclaimed author, poet, dramatist and philosopher led him to experience the personal attentions of the most illustrious men and women of his time. His irreverent, to say the least, portrayals of the leading figures of the day provide a hilarious portrait of the royal courts of Europe which fought over his services for almost thirty years. Only published posthumously, these memoirs relate and then commentate on literary accomplishments, historic fact and salacious gossip alike.