Died 1 June 1817 | ||
Augustin-Louis, marquis de Ximénès (28 February 1728, Paris – 1 June 1817) was an 18th-century French poet and playwright.
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Biography
Born in a family from the Kingdom of Aragon, he began his career in the army, where he joined the grey mosqueters gris, and later the gendarmes od French Flanders. After he was appointed maréchal de Saxe's aide de camp, he fought at his side in the battle of Fontenoy, and then retired from the service with the rank of mestre de camp.
Ximénès had his first tragedy, Selim, presented in 1746. The second, Épicaris, ou la Mort de Néron, was hissed to the bitter end and had only one performance. The third, Amalazonte , had no more success and earned him the epigram imitated from Boileau: "After Épicaris / Laughters ; / After Amalazonte / Shame." The failure of Don Carlos, which he presented at his own expense in Lyon in 1761 ended his stage career.
Known for his loose morals and for his gallantry, he was equally famous for his ugliness and his extraordinary uncleanliness. Having won the favor of Voltaire, he was familiarly received in Ferney, until Ximenes stole the manuscript of his Histoire de la guerre de 1741. Voltaire nevertheless consented to receive him again a few years later, on condition that he would sign for him a pamphlet against Jean-Jacques Rousseau. This pamphlet was long considered to be Ximénès'
He proclaimed to be a supporter of the Revolution and during the Reign of Terror took the name of Dean of sans-culottes poets, which he later changed into that of dean of the tragic poets. An occasional poet, he successively published verses to the Republic, to Bonaparte, who gave him a pension, and Louis XVIII, who gave him the Cross of Order of Saint Louis. During his long career, he continuously, but in vain, was a candidate to the Académie française.
Augustin-Louis de Ximénès authored the expression perfidious Albion. It is to be found in his poem L'Ère des Français, published in 1793, where there is that verse: Let us attack perfidious Albion in her waters !