Born in France on the eve of the Revolution, Madeleine Sophie Barat, canonized by the Catholic Church in 1925, was the founder of the Society of the Sacred Heart in 1800. This first major biography of her since the late 19th century, peels away the shrouds of hagiography and sainthood and reveals the accomplishments of this esteemed educator, woman of the church and an individual in her own right.Using abundant materials from the archives of the Society around the world as well as from public archives in France and Italy, this work tracks her development from her childhood in Burgundy to her death in Paris in 1865. Taking account of the political climate of her time and her own inner journey, Madeleine Sophie Barat: A Life shows how she created new place and spaces for the education of women that had an impact on society far beyond her own expectations and lifetime.