LEGNANO

legnano, a town of lombardy, italy, in the province of milan, 17 m. n.w. of that city by rail, 682 ft. above sea-level. pop. (1881) 7153, (1901) 18,285. the church of s. magno, built in the style of bramante by g. lampugnano (1504-1529), contains an altar-piece considered one of luini's best works. there are also remains of a castle of the visconti. legnano is the seat of important cotton and silk industries, with machine-shops, boiler-works, and dyeing and printing of woven goods, and thread. close by, the lombard league defeated frederick barbarossa in 1176; a monument in commemoration of the battle was erected on the field in 1876, while there is another by butti erected in 1900 in the piazza federico barbarossa. legouve, gabriel jean baptiste ernest wilfrid (1807-1903), french dramatist, son of the poet gabriel legouve (1764-1812), who wrote a pastoral _la mort d'abel_ (1793) and a tragedy of _epicharis et neron_, was born in paris on the 5th of february 1807. his mother died in 1810, and almost immediately afterwards his father was removed to a lunatic asylum. the child, however, inherited a considerable fortune, and was carefully educated. jean nicolas bouilly (1763-1842) was his tutor, and early instilled into the young legouve a passion for literature, to which the example of his father and of his grandfather, j. b. legouve (1729-1783), predisposed him. as early as 1829 he carried away a prize of the french academy for a poem on the discovery of printing; and in 1832 he published a curious little volume of verses, entitled _les morts bizarres_. in those early days legouve brought out a succession of novels, of which _edith de falsen_ enjoyed a considerable success. in 1847 he began the work by which he is best remembered, his contributions to the development and education of the female mind, by lecturing at the college of france on the moral history of women: these discourses were collected into a volume in 1848, and enjoyed a great success. legouve wrote considerably for the stage, and in 1849 he collaborated with a. e. scribe in _adrienne lecouvreur_. in 1855 he brought out his tragedy of _medee_, the success of which had much to do with his election to the french academy. he succeeded to the fauteuil of j. a. ancelot, and was received by flourens, who dwelt on the plays of legouve as his principal claim to consideration. as time passed on, however, he became less prominent as a playwright, and more so as a lecturer and propagandist on woman's rights and the advanced education of children, in both of which directions he was a pioneer in french society. his _la femme en france au xix^me siecle_ (1864), reissued, much enlarged, in 1878; his _messieurs les enfants_ (1868), his _conferences parisiennes_ (1872), his _nos filles et nos fils_ (1877), and his _une education de jeune fille_ (1884) were works of wide-reaching influence in the moral order. in 1886-1887 he published, in two volumes, his _soixante ans de souvenirs_, an excellent specimen of autobiography. he was raised in 1887 to the highest grade of the legion of honour, and held for many years the post of inspector-general of female education in the national schools. legouve was always an advocate of physical training. he was long accounted one of the best shots in france, and although, from a conscientious objection, he never fought a duel, he made the art of fencing his life-long hobby. after the death of desire nisard in 1888, legouve became the "father" of the french academy. he died on the 14th of march 1903.