Madame de (Henriette Elizabeth) Witt

Henriette Guizot de Witt (1829–1908) was a French writer who published under the name Mme de Witt. Born in Paris, she was the daughter of the historian and statesman François Guizot and later married Conrad de Witt, linking her life closely with two well-known Protestant families in French public life.

She wrote across several forms, including history, biography, memoir, and books for younger readers. Her work is especially associated with family history and historical storytelling, and she is also remembered for writing about her father in Monsieur Guizot dans sa famille et avec ses amis.

Her background gave her unusual access to political and intellectual circles, but her appeal as an author comes from something simpler: she helped make the past feel human and readable. For listeners interested in French history, 19th-century culture, or reflective memoir, her books offer both intimacy and a strong sense of time and place.