Chevalier: France's Revolutionary Maestro
Dan Snow's History Hit
History Hit
4.7 • 13.7K Ratings
🗓️ 11 June 2023
⏱️ 22 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges is perhaps the most accomplished classical musician that you've never heard of. A composer, soldier and champion fencer, this episode traces his life from the French colony of Guadeloupe to the concert halls of Paris and the battlefields of the French Revolution.
So how did a man of mixed heritage overcome the prejudices of the day? And what was the significance of his achievements at the time? Dan is joined by Stephen Williams, director of the acclaimed 2023 biographical drama Chevalier, to talk about his life and the importance of remembering it.
Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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Transcript
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| 1:22.0 | Hi everybody, welcome to Dan Snow's History Hit. |
| 1:25.0 | John Adams, the man that would become the second president of the United States, described him as the most accomplished man in Europe. |
| 1:34.0 | Apart from his many other talents, he could throw a coin in the air and hit it with a shot from his pistol. |
| 1:39.0 | He was a musician, he was a composer, he was a society darling, he was a musical teacher and intimate of Mary and Twinnett. |
| 1:48.0 | And he was mixed race, he was a man of colour. |
| 1:52.0 | The Chevalier de Saint-George, Joseph Bologne, was born in Guadeloupe in 1745. |
| 2:01.0 | His father was a married, wealthy, planter, a member of the island elite. |
... |
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