Joseph-Alphonse Esménard
Encyclopedia
Joseph-Alphonse Esménard (Pélissanne
, 1770 - Fondi
, 25 June 1811) was a French poet and the brother of the journalist Jean-Baptiste Esménard
.
and Greece. Returning to Paris in 1797, he wrote for La Quotidienne
but was forced to emgirate again after 18 Fructidor, not without first spending two months in the Prison du Temple. He returned to France again after 18 Brumaire
, but soon afterwards left for Saint-Domingue
as secretary to general Leclerc on the Saint-Domingue expedition
. On his return from the expedition, he was made head of the bureau des théâtres under the interior minister thanks to the protection of Savary
. Soon after this, however, he left once again to follow admiral Villaret de Joyeuse
to Martinique
.
He then came back to France for good, where he received important favours from the imperial
government for services rendered - censor of theatres and libraries, censor of the Journal de l'Empire and chef de division to the ministry of police. In 1810, he was elected to the Académie française
.
For having published a satirical article against one of Napoleon's envoys to Russia in the Journal de l'Empire, he was exiled to Italy for a few months. On his return trip he died in a carriage accident at Fondi
, near Naples
.
He wrote Le triomphe de Trajan, a three-act opera with music by Jean-François Lesueur, on the life of Trajan
but full of flattering allusions to Napoleon I of France
. It was produced to triumphal reviews in 1807. He also wrote the three-act opera Fernand Cortez
ou la conquête du Mexique (1809) in collaboration with Victor-Joseph-Étienne de Jouy, with music by Gaspare Spontini
. This too proved very successful. He also wrote several verses to the glory of Napoleon, collected as La Couronne poétique de Napoléon (1807).
Pélissanne
Pélissanne is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in southern France. It is close to Aix-en-Provence and Salon-de-Provence.-Population:-External links:*...
, 1770 - Fondi
Fondi
Fondi is a city and comune in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy, halfway between Rome and Naples. Before the construction of the highway between the latter cities in the late 1950s, Fondi had been an important settlement on the Roman Via Appia, which was the main connection from Rome to...
, 25 June 1811) was a French poet and the brother of the journalist Jean-Baptiste Esménard
Jean-Baptiste Esménard
Jean-Baptiste Esménard was a French journalist and brother to the poet Joseph-Alphonse Esménard.-Life:Fighting under the First French Empire as an army officer, he was imprisoned in the Force from 1810 to 1814 for a Legitimist plot....
.
Life
An editor of Royalist newspapers, Esménard left France after 10 August 1792 and travelled throughout Europe, going to England, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, ConstantinopleConstantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
and Greece. Returning to Paris in 1797, he wrote for La Quotidienne
La Quotidienne
-History:It was set up in 1790 by M. de Coutouly. It ceased publication in the face of events in 1792, before returning to print in July 1774 under the title Le Tableau de Paris, returning to its original title in 1817....
but was forced to emgirate again after 18 Fructidor, not without first spending two months in the Prison du Temple. He returned to France again after 18 Brumaire
18 Brumaire
The coup of 18 Brumaire was the coup d'état by which General Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the French Directory, replacing it with the French Consulate...
, but soon afterwards left for Saint-Domingue
Saint-Domingue
The labour for these plantations was provided by an estimated 790,000 African slaves . Between 1764 and 1771, the average annual importation of slaves varied between 10,000-15,000; by 1786 it was about 28,000, and from 1787 onward, the colony received more than 40,000 slaves a year...
as secretary to general Leclerc on the Saint-Domingue expedition
Saint-Domingue expedition
The Saint-Domingue expedition was a French military expedition sent by Napoleon Bonaparte, then First Consul, under his brother-in-law Charles Victor Emmanuel Leclerc in an attempt to regain French control of the island of Saint-Domingue and curtail the measures of independence taken by the former...
. On his return from the expedition, he was made head of the bureau des théâtres under the interior minister thanks to the protection of Savary
Anne Jean Marie René Savary
Anne Jean Marie René Savary, 1st Duc de Rovigo , French general and diplomat, was born at Marcq in the Ardennes.-Biography:...
. Soon after this, however, he left once again to follow admiral Villaret de Joyeuse
Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse
Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse was a French admiral.-Early career:Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse was born in Auch, in the heart of Gascony. The Villaret de Joyeuse family figured among the minor nobility from Languedoc...
to Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
.
He then came back to France for good, where he received important favours from the imperial
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
government for services rendered - censor of theatres and libraries, censor of the Journal de l'Empire and chef de division to the ministry of police. In 1810, he was elected to the Académie française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
.
For having published a satirical article against one of Napoleon's envoys to Russia in the Journal de l'Empire, he was exiled to Italy for a few months. On his return trip he died in a carriage accident at Fondi
Fondi
Fondi is a city and comune in the province of Latina, Lazio, central Italy, halfway between Rome and Naples. Before the construction of the highway between the latter cities in the late 1950s, Fondi had been an important settlement on the Roman Via Appia, which was the main connection from Rome to...
, near Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
.
Works
Esménard is best known for the didactic and descriptive poem entitled La Navigation, first published in 8 verses in 1805, then re-edited to 6 verses in 1806. It is a precise work, drawn from observations made by the author in the course of his travels. Its versification, however, is monotonous and it is marked by a total absence of action and movement.He wrote Le triomphe de Trajan, a three-act opera with music by Jean-François Lesueur, on the life of Trajan
Trajan
Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...
but full of flattering allusions to Napoleon I of France
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
. It was produced to triumphal reviews in 1807. He also wrote the three-act opera Fernand Cortez
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...
ou la conquête du Mexique (1809) in collaboration with Victor-Joseph-Étienne de Jouy, with music by Gaspare Spontini
Gaspare Spontini
Gaspare Luigi Pacifico Spontini was an Italian opera composer and conductor, extremely celebrated in his time, though largely forgotten after his death.-Biography:...
. This too proved very successful. He also wrote several verses to the glory of Napoleon, collected as La Couronne poétique de Napoléon (1807).
External links
- http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=mediatype%3A%28texts%29%20-contributor%3Agutenberg%20AND%20%28subject%3A%22Esm%C3%A9nard%2C%20Joseph-Alphonse%201770-1811%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Esm%C3%A9nard%2C%20Joseph-Alphonse%2C%201770-1811%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esm%C3%A9nard%22%20OR%20title%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esm%C3%A9nard%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esm%C3%A9nard%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22Esmenard%2C%20Joseph-Alphonse%201770-1811%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Esmenard%2C%20Joseph-Alphonse%2C%201770-1811%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esmenard%22%20OR%20title%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esmenard%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Joseph-Alphonse%20Esmenard%22%29Works by or about Joseph-Alphonse Esménard] at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books original editions) - Académie française