Goudar angel

Pierre Angel Goudar , more known under the name of Angel Goudar , is an adventurer and French literary man born on March 28th 1708 with Montpellier and deceased after 1791. Agent of the French government, journalist, notorious swindler, it seems to have traversed all Europe.

One finds also Goudart, Goudard or knight of Goudar.

Biography

Montpellier (1708-1733)

He is the son of Simon François Goudar, merchant in the trade of fabric and general inspector of manufactures in the States of Languedoc.

Angel is placed, with his/her brothers, towards the eleven years age, with the Royal College of the Society of Jesus of Montpellier. It strongly leaves there marked by the teaching system the Jesuits, based on humiliation, the constant monitoring, the denouncement and the corporal punishments.

Paris (1733-1739)

He would have liked to take again the load of his father, learned during his rounds, but the States of Languedoc decided some differently. The absence of professional prospects in its area leads it to go to Paris to make career there. Goudar arrives in the capital in the current of the autumn 1733. He attends the gambling dens, the prostitutes and the " young ladies of the opéra".

Italy (1739-1747)

In 1739, it must leave the city, probably ruined, and goes back to Montpellier touch the heritage of his/her mother who sponges her gambling debts. After that, Ange leaves for Italy where it makes knowledge with the gaming rooms of Turin and Venice, with the wheels of the kingdom of Naples, the operas, the castrati… It is from there certainly, among the transalpine gambling dens, in contact with the rascals and of the easy women, that Ange Goudar definitively embraced the career of adventurer.

In 1746, it makes print with Venice its second work the French Adventurer . The same year, it takes party for Génois revolted (allies of France) against their Senate which collaborates with the Austrians, at the time of the War of succession of Austria. It is received in audience by the marshal of Beautiful-Isle about Génois but this one makes him only one vague promise. It is possible that the " mission" of Goudar is initative personal in favor of Genoa. That would explain why its work, general Histoire of the Republic of Genoa was never published. Before leaving Italy, Goudar publishes a new work, the Spy of Thamas Kouli-Kan in the courses of Europe, or letters and Mémoire of Pagi-Nassir-Bek, container various anecdotes political to be used for the history of time present. Translated the Persan one by the Rochebrune abbot. (1747). This book constitutes the first of the long series of various the " espions" (Chinese, French, Othoman…) where Goudar covered the mask throughout its career. Composed of letters, this work also represents a homage to the author of the Lettres Persians.

The return to Paris (1747-1752)

In the capital, he attends the French Comédie and the Italians, the Comic Opera. He writes and composes a collection of maxims which he entitles various Pensées or Reflections on various subjects, in the taste of Mr. of the Heather by Ange Goudar , where borer the satire. Its literary reputation is quickly established by many works concerning all the always marked subjects but seal of the polemic: in music, he denounces the armed robbery of the Italian music, in economy, he seems a savage partisan of the Physiocratie.

In December 1750, it meets Casanova in Paris, at the time of a representation of the Venetian Fêtes of André Campra. They will be brought to be re-examined in the future. During this new Parisian stay, Goudar seems to be parvenu to push itself in the spheres of the capacity (perhaps thanks to the Beautiful-Isle mediation of ). In any case, it is charged, in 1752, by the French government of a mission of information commercial to the Portugal (in fact, industrial espionage), in order to determine how France could intervene there in order to compete with the England.

The Portuguese mission (1752-1754)

Since the establishment of Joseph Ier of Portugal (1750), the Marquis de Pombal as a lit minister, endeavors to rectify the situation of the country. One is unaware of if Goudar had personal contacts with Pombal. The two men shared the same anglophobia and the will of the minister to modernize his country could only allure Goudar. Especially its knowledge concerning manufactures, the trade of cloths and the economy in general could help Pombal. For that, the Portuguese minister it even rewarded some. Indeed Goudar makes be reproduced later on the Frontispice of its various works the title of " Knight " attache with the Order of Christ of Portugal. Its Portuguese stay (1752-1754) has permi to him to become a true economist. It feels able to carry a critical glance on any European country and to propose reforms with its government.

The exile inhabitant of Avignon (1754-1757)

From return in France, Goudar returns to Paris, to undoubtedly give an account of its mission. However, it finds its bad habits (gambling dens, play). A business of cheating makes it banish capital. It takes refuge in the Comtat Venaissin, with Avignon, out of reach of the justice of king de France. It benefits from this stay, to be exerted seriously with the writing. It takes the defense of the manufacturers of Languedoc by asserting the freedom of the exchanges (with Raising, monopoly of a Marseilles company). It attacks the general Ferme with the Testament of Louis Mandrin, Généralissime of the troops of smugglers, written by itself in its prison (1755). It proposes the abuses made by the farmers in the name of the king of France who weaken the country. In 1756, it publishes the interests of France badly heard, in the branches of agriculture, the population, finances, the trade, the Navy and industry . The book appears in a favorable context, after the War of succession of Austria. This one with contributed to exhaust the resources of France and the inversion of alliances bringing the Guerre seven year old is then badly perceived by the population. The country needs deep reforms. The budget deficit perhaps made up only by new resources. Goudar proposes to ideas as regards economy, of policy, critical the clergy and the royal expenditure.

By that, it obtains the celebrity, but Goudar did not obtain what it wished: he hoped to obtain a position of responsibility on the level of the administration of the State. He does not insist and devotes from now on free course to his satirical liveliness and his critical taste.

In the last months of 1757, before setting out again of Paris, it publishes the History of the Greeks or those which correct fortune with the play , work which recalls with humor the history of the cheaters. Goudar is itself a player, but he is especially a cheater! What constitutes a paradoxical behavior. But does not intend to reveal the secrecies of the play and thus to saw the branch on which he sat… For him, the cheating is only one logical consequence of the play. This one became official when John Law and the Regent Philippe of Orleans organized the royal Bank which they hold with the complicity of the princes.

Failure in the intellectual mediums (1757-1761)

One is unaware of which were the activities of Goudar before its departure of Paris. Undoubtedly tested it bitterness not to have succeeded in infiltrating the intellectual mediums. It preserved all its life a life aversion with regard to the Encyclopédistes. Not because of their ideas, but that, to enter their " coterie" , they proceeded by co-optation and relation. Goudar was not able to be accepted there because its reputation of individualist and ambiguous was to worry some about them.

It reproaches thereafter the encyclopedists their duplicity, in particular concerning the report/ratio which they maintain with the " monarchs éclairés".

While waiting, Ange Goudar takes again the play and the exploitation of the girls which pays to him well much more than the sale of its books. It is also at this time that Mr. of Sartine starts to be interested in him. The lieutenant of police force fixed himself like objective to clean Paris of his gambling dens and other equivocal places. It becomes urgent for Goudar to move away from Paris. It thus finds refuge in England, country liberal and tolerant, where one is with the shelter of the continuations and the extraditions.

England (1761-1764)

At that time, London has in its center, much of spies, the preliminaries of peace having to lead to the treaty of Paris having started in September 1762. Goudar contacts others exiled. Speaking English little, plus the Italian, he attends initially the transalpine rabble in exile. Then joins two individuals with whom, it foams the gambling dens and plays the pickups for girls of small virtue who pour a percentage to them on the master keys.

Casanova finds Goudar at the beginning of the summer 1763 with Vauxhall Garden, the oldest place of pleasures of London. Montpellier helps Casanova to attract itself the favors of the English women of which it does not understand the language.

Goudar attends a waitress of sixteen years Irish brewery, named Sara (one finds also Sally).

At the same time, a diplomatic real scandal burst in London between the knight of Éon and the count de Guerchy where it lends his feather for two lampoons against the knight, Lettre of a French with Mr. the Duke of Resident of Nevers in Paris and a Contre-Note or Letter with Mister the Marquis of L. in Paris . After that, Goudar and Casanova are not left any more. The French is tiny room to play mackerels or the writers with pledge.

Nevertheless he worked with what was to be the most known work of its contemporaries, the Chinese Espion , which appeared in 1764 in six volumes. He is not satisfied to criticize manners, but intends to raise the secrecy on the policy of the States, on the incompetence of the ministers, the unworthiness of large who control Europe. Goudar made of the Chinese Spy a genuine machine of war against those which were unaware of its reform proposals. In the end of the year 1764 or at the beginning of 1765, Angel and Sara (which became its mistress) embarks in London for the continent.

The Italian stay with Sara (1765-1776)

Sara allured Ferdinand, king de Naples and of Deux-Siciles at the time of their stay in Italy in 1764-77. But the queen made threaten “of the Reverend Pere Poignardini” the young Irish of which she discovered the relation adulterates and “made him a small pension provided that she augmenteroit not marital neutrality”.

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