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Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (; also Saint-George and Joseph Boulogne; December 25, 1745 – June 10, 1799)〔 Date of birth as affirmed by lifelong friend.〕 was a champion fencer, a virtuoso violinist and conductor of the leading symphony orchestra in Paris. Born in Guadeloupe, he was the son of George Bologne de Saint-Georges, a wealthy planter, and Nanon, his African slave.〔Document: Permission for Mme. George Bologne to take Nanon ''negresse'' and Joseph, her son age 2, to France; Archives départementales de la Gironde; 6B/50.〕 During the French Revolution, Saint-Georges was colonel of the 'Légion St.-Georges,'〔Document: Formation of the Légion St. Georges; S.H.A.T. (French Army Archives, Vincennes), Dossier Bologne 2Ye91/47.〕 the first all-black regiment in Europe, fighting on the side of the Republic. Today the Chevalier de Saint-Georges is best remembered as the first classical composer of African ancestry. ==Youth and education== Born in Baillif, Basse-Terre he was the son of George Bologne de Saint-Georges, a wealthy planter on the island of Guadeloupe, and Nanon, his African slave.〔Document: Permission for Mme. George Bologne to take Nanon ''negresse'' and Joseph, her son age 2, to France; Archives départementales de la Gironde; 6B/50.〕 His father, called ‘de Saint-Georges’ after one of his plantations in Guadeloupe, was a commoner until 1757, when he acquired the title of ''Gentilhomme ordinaire de la chambre du roi'' (Gentleman of the king’s chamber).〔''Brevet'' (Warrant), April 1757, Archives Nationales, 1.01 101. Doc. 8.2 in: 〕 Misled by Roger de Beauvoir’s 1840 romantic novel ’’Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges’’, most of his biographers confused Joseph’s father with Guillaume-Pierre de Boullogne, Controller of Finance, whose family was ennobled in the 15th century. This led to the erroneous spelling of Saint-Georges’ family name as “Boulogne,” persisting to this day, even in the BnF, Bibliothèque nationale de France. In 1753, his father took Joseph, age seven, to France for his education.〔"St. Georges and Mulatre J'f.," listed as passengers landing in the Bordeaux custom officials' booklets; C.A.O.M.,French Overseas Archives, F5b 14-58; Doc. 7.1 in: Banat, p. 492.〕 Two years later, on August 26, 1755, listed as passengers on the ship, ''L’Aimable Rose'', Bologne de Saint-Georges and ''Negresse'' Nanon landed in Bordeaux.〔C.A.O.M. F5b 14-58. Doc. 8.1 in: Banat, p. 490〕 In Paris, reunited with their son Joseph, they moved into a spacious apartment at 49 rue Saint André de Arts. Joseph was 13 when he was enrolled in Tessier de La Boëssière’s ''Académie royale polytechnique des armes et de ‘l’équitation'' (fencing and horsemanship). According to La Boëssière,''fils'', son of the Master, “At 15 his () progress was so rapid, that he was already beating the best swordsmen, and at 17 he developed the greatest speed imaginable.”〔La Boëssière, fils p. xvj〕 He was still a student when he beat Alexandre Picard, a fencing-master in Rouen, who had been mocking him as 'Boëssière’s mulatto,' in public. That match, bet on heavily by a public divided into partisans and opponents of slavery, was an important coup for the latter. His father, proud of his feat, rewarded Joseph with a handsome horse and buggy. In 1766 on graduating from the Academy, Joseph was made a ''Gendarme du roi'' (officer of the king’s body-guard) and a chevalier. Henceforth Joseph Bologne, by adopting the suffix of his father, would be known as the 'Chevalier de Saint-Georges'. In 1764 when, at the end of the Seven Years' War George Bologne returned to Guadeloupe to look after his plantations, he left Joseph an annuity of 8000 francs and an adequate pension to Nanon who remained with her son in Paris. According to Saint-Georges' friend, Louise Fusil, “... admired for his fencing and riding prowess, he served as a model to young sportsmen … who formed a court around him.” A fine dancer, Saint-Georges was also invited to balls and welcomed in the salons (and boudoirs) of highborn ladies. “Partial for the music of liaisons where ''amour'' had real meaning… he loved and was loved."〔La Boëssière,fils, '' Notice'', xxj〕 Yet he continued to fence daily in the various ''salles'' of Paris. It was there he met the Angelos, father and son, fencing masters from London, the mysterious Chevalier d'Éon, and the teenage Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, all of whom would play a role in his future. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Chevalier de Saint-Georges」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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