Zoé Oldenbourg

Zoé Oldenbourg (1916–2002) was a Russian-born French novelist and historian specializing in medieval French history, particularly the Crusades and Cathars. Born in Petrograd, Russia, she emigrated to Paris with her family in 1925, studied at the Sorbonne and Académie Ranson, and published her first novel Argile et cendres (The World is Not Enough) in 1946. She won the Prix Femina for La Pierre angulaire (The Cornerstone) in 1953 and authored notable works like Massacre at Montségur and The Crusades.