Louise de Marillac was born out of wedlock on August 12, 1592[1] at Ferrières-en-Brie near Le Meux,[2] now in the department of Oise, in Picardy.

When her father married his new wife, Antoinette Le Camus, she refused to accept Louise as part of their family.

Nevertheless, she was cared for and received an excellent education at the royal monastery of Poissy near Paris, where her aunt was a Dominican nun.

She had a leading role in the Ladies of Charity, an organization of wealthy women dedicated to assisting those suffering from poverty and disease.

In 1623, when illness was wasting Antoine, depression was overcoming Louise[4] In addition, she suffered for years with internal doubt and guilt for having not pursued the religious calling she had felt as a young woman.

She was fortunate to have a wise and sympathetic counsellor, Francis de Sales, then in Paris,[3] and then his friend, the bishop of Belley.

Being a woman of energy, intelligence, determination and devotion, Louise wrote her own "Rule of Life in the World" that detailed a structure for her day.

Still, Louise managed to find time to maintain her household, entertain guests and nurture Michel, her 13-year-old son with special needs.

Vincent and Louise realized that direct service of the poor was not easy for the nobility or the bourgeoisie because of social class.

[9] The need of organization in work for the poor suggested to de Paul the forming of a confraternity among the women of his parish in Châtillon-les-Dombes.

It was so successful that it spread from the rural districts to Paris, where noble ladies often found it hard to give personal care to the needs of the poor.

Vincent de Paul remedied it by referring young women who inquired about serving persons in need to go to Paris and devote themselves to the ministry under the direction of the Ladies of Charity.

Louise found the help she needed in young, humble country women, who had the energy and the proper attitude to deal with people weighed down by destitution and suffering.

Their distinctive habit, a grey wool tunic with a large headdress or cornette of white linen, was the usual dress of Breton peasant women of the 17th century and later.

Louise's work with these young women developed into a system of pastoral care at the Hôtel-Dieu, the oldest and largest hospital in Paris.

After completing negotiations with the city officials and the hospital managers, Louise instituted collaboration among the doctors, nurses and others to form a comprehensive team.

Under her guidance, they expanded their scope of service to include orphanages, institutions for the elderly and mentally ill, prisons and the battlefield.

[9] Aided by her directors, the young Louise had entered into profound prayer in the tradition of the Rhenish-Flemish spiritualists, and had been introduced to the French school of spirituality of Cardinal Pierre de Bérulle.

In light of this, her biographer, Nicholas Gobillon, removed any traces of mysticism from Louise's writings and rewrote her meditations.

[13] Louise de Marillac is honored with a Lesser Feast on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America[14] on March 15.