Claude Fauriel

Claude Fauriel (1772-1844) was one of Manzoni’s most important and authoritative interlocutors in the discussion relating to Enlightenment and romantic France, and one of the main exponents of the Parisian group known as the Idéologues. He was an enthusiastic participator in the literary salon of Sophie de Condorcet (as well as her lover), where the most famous letterati of the time met, including Benjamin Constant, François Guizot, Chateaubriand and M.me de Staël. A philologist and linguist, he knew many languages and dialects, both ancient and modern. He was also a talented historian, and very interested in the history of romance Europe in the Middle Ages. Like Manzoni, his vision of the Middle Ages differed somewhat from the widespread view in romantic circles, and tended towards a debunking of what he considered to be over-celebrated figures (such as Charlemagne, over whom Friedrich Schlegel enthused). He also took an interest in folklore, publishing in 1824 a collection of Canti popolari della Grecia Moderna. His published works account for only part of the many study projects discussed with Manzoni and never carried out. In 1811, he translated the idyll by the Dane Jens Baggesen, Parthenais, a text that Manzoni had also been asked to translate, and in 1823 translated Manzoni’s Conte di Carmagnola into French. In the 1830s, he published a study on the origin of the chivalric epics and a history of southern France under the Germans. His Histoire de la littérature provençale was published posthumously, as were other works on history and literary criticism, including his studies on Dante. The best testimonial to the bond of friendship and culture between Fauriel and Manzoni is their considerable correspondence which started in 1806. They saw each other mainly in Paris, but in 1824 Fauriel visited Milan, staying at the Manzoni home and returning to Paris the following year. His departure was sudden and somewhat mysterious, and marked the start of a decline in what had been until then a solid friendship.