Monsieur de Saint-George

Download or read book Monsieur de Saint-George written by Alain Guédé and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2003-12 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Virtually forgotten until now, his life is the stuff of legend. Born in 1739 in Guadeloupe to a slave mother and a French noble father, he became the finest swordsman of his age, an insider at the doomed court of Louis XVI, and, most of all, a virtuosic musician. A violinist, he directed the Olympic Society of Concerts, which was considered the finest in Europe in an age of great musicians, including Haydn, from whom he commissioned a symphony, and Mozart, to whom he was often compared. He also became the first Freemason of color, embracing the French Revolution with the belief that it would end the racism against which--despite his illustrious achievements--he struggled his whole life"--Publisher's description.