Editing Autobiography (section)

=== Memoirs ===
{{Main|Memoir}}

A [[memoir]] is slightly different in character from an autobiography. While an autobiography typically focuses on the "life and times" of the writer, a memoir has a narrower, more intimate focus on the author's memories, feelings and emotions. Memoirs have often been written by politicians or military leaders as a way to record and publish an account of their public exploits. One early example is that of [[Julius Caesar]]'s ''[[Commentarii de Bello Gallico]]'', also known as ''Commentaries on the Gallic Wars''. In the work, Caesar describes the battles that took place during the nine years that he spent fighting local armies in the [[Gallic Wars]]. His second memoir, ''[[Commentarii de Bello Civili]]'' (or ''Commentaries on the Civil War'') is an account of the events that took place between 49 and 48 BC in [[Caesar's civil war|the civil war]] against [[Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus|Gnaeus Pompeius]] and the [[Roman Senate|Senate]].

[[Leonor López de Córdoba]] (1362–1420) wrote what is supposed to be the first autobiography in Spanish. The [[English Civil War]] (1642–1651) provoked a number of examples of this genre, including works by Sir [[Edmund Ludlow]] and Sir [[Sir John Reresby, 2nd Baronet|John Reresby]]. French examples from the same period include the memoirs of [[Jean François Paul de Gondi, cardinal de Retz|Cardinal de Retz]] (1614–1679) and the [[Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon|Duc de Saint-Simon]].