1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Pleiad

PLEIAD (Gr. Πλειάς), in Greek literature, the name given (by analogy from Pleiades, below) by the Alexandrian critics to seven tragic poets who flourished during the reign of Ptolemy Philadelphus (285–247 B.C.). In French literature, in addition to the Pleiad of Charlemagne, there were two famous groups of the kind. The first, during the reign of Henri III. (1574–1589), the chief member of which was Pierre de Ronsard, sought to improve the French language and literature by enthusiastic imitation of the classics; the second, under Louis XIII. (1610–1643), consisted of authors who excelled in the composition of Latin verse.