Gustave Cohen

Who is Gustave Cohen?

Gustave Cohen was a French medievalist.

Cohen was born and grew up in Brussels. He fought for the French army in World War I. He became professor of medieval literature at the Sorbonne, encouraging his students to put on dramatic productions of medieval material. After the Vichy government forced him to resign in 1940, Cohen emigrated to the United States. In February 1942 he helped found the New York École libre des hautes études with Henri Focillon and Jacques Maritain. He established the Entretiens de Pontigny, symposiums of French cultural activity held at Mount Holyoke College in 1942, 1943 and 1944.