All the most interesting things about the life of Giacomo Casanova
Some of the following will be a shock and a revelation for you, but, as usual, the famous “example of idle talk and desire” Giacomo Mokasanova was in fact not devoid of the slightest inclination to adventure, but he was not a brilliant little lover either.
Contents of the article:
- Childhood and adolescence
- Youth and the first steps on the path of temptation
- Rome and slander
- Didn”t serve — not a man
- Sex, drugs and rock “n” roll
- Paris — the capital of love and debauchery
- The Shawshank Redemption — XVIII
- Spy passions
- Loss of influence and involuntary travel
- End of travel and return home
Childhood and adolescence
The journey of the hero of this story began in Venice — then an independent state, which gradually lost its former influence and wealth. In general, the future hero of the legendary fairy tale, until the age of eight, was considered sickly, pessimistic, slow-witted and intelligent, even by the majority of those around him (and his parents’ relatives), but certainly not smart.
When his father, or Iacomo himself, later turned to him, his mother’s husband died early, and his mother that year was wrapped up in a tour, dealing with forbidden women in Venice, so he was first raised by his grandmother, and then settled in Padua, with the abbess of Gotossi. Not such a stupid kid in a library where they studied Latin on their own, right?
Youth and the first steps on the path of temptation
At the age of 16, the future Gilead was appointed and received the title of abbot. Despite the obvious importance of this event, everything gives birth to a little more. In Venice at that time, the title of abbot was similar to the titles of minor Russian officials in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the end, fate led young Giacomo to find his first patron in the person of Senator Maripiero.
As it turned out, the legendary hero-lover until the last days of his life was a stubborn and convinced Catholic and was well versed in theology, so the first of his sermons was an impressive success. Indeed, in addition to knowledge of the issues in question, success was facilitated by the insertion of clever and inventive quotations from Horace, in which the youth of the preacher played an important role.
Casanova then meets his first lover and receives the first fruits of his adventures. Having reached out for the same actress whom his guardian was also trailing, the young lover fell out of favor and was expelled.
However, don’t be too sad, the legend of the love story is entering the seminary. However, a homosexual scandal befalls him. His boyfriend discovers him in his bed.
This offense (or credit card debt, whatever it looked like) landed Iacomomo Casanova in prison for the first time. And it was here that his charisma, wit and high communication skills manifested themselves — being literate, he found a hairdresser for his cellmate in exchange for writing various kinds of petitions, and sold part of what he managed to “buy back” for a more spacious cell.
To gain access to literature and things, he worked as a scribe in the prison administration, but acquired acquaintance with the Greeks in his own person. He was cured without any significant consequences.
To avoid being released from prison and being moved for his adventures and debts, Giacomo left Venice and was taken to Rome.
Rome and slander
In the city on seven hills, the legendary lover spun as best he could. He wrote love letters, including one to a priest, preached to the best of his ability, and tried to make money from whatever he could get his hands on.
And everything would have been fine if not for the sex scandal that erupted shortly after his arrival from Venice — a scandal to which, at the same time, the students of Eros himself had nothing to do. A situation arose when many high-ranking confessors, mired in debauchery and feeling the threat of exposure, “let loose all the dogs” on someone who was neither a Roman nor a high-ranking confessor. A kind of Venetian abbot.
In general, a series of charges threatened, at best, with more than ten years of imprisonment or even execution, so that the disappointed guests of Rome had to flee to their homeland, and Casanova abandoned the further path of a clergyman, but not out of faith, in order to become a soldier.
Didn”t serve — not a man
Having acquired a military position and donned a uniform, Venus’s favorite went in search of happiness in the service. But instead he spent most of his salary on card games, which bored him.
The trip to Constantinople was supposed to add variety to the routine of the service, which was beginning to get boring. However, she achieved this thanks to her acquaintance with Claude Boneval, an adventurer and scoundrel who had already converted to Islam. Through him, Casanova met Yusuf Ali, an influential member of the Turkish elite.
Giacomo, who impressed the latter with his manners and theological knowledge, received an offer he declined due to insufficient preparation—Yusuf himself offered his 15-year-old daughter in marriage, but only on the condition that he convert to Islam.
Despite all the wealth acquired during this trip, Casanova returned to Venice with “falconry” in mind, squandered everything he had on gambling, and left his post in search of new sources of income. His excellent and well-rounded education bore fruit, and the warrior of bed and comfort became a musician.
Sex, drugs and rock “n” roll
There are no better words to describe this stage in the life of the legend of sensual adventures. His moral and ethical standards quickly collapsed to the level of his peers in the world around him and technology, and he became immersed in the seriousness of it all.
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After alcoholism, sex in the same alcoholic rush, creating intense games in the vastness of his hometown, and violating public decorum in every way, he began to lose all hope of regaining his former status.
But fate had other plans—and the hapless musician found a new patron in Bragadin—a fortunate coincidence and a certain recklessness saved Casanova.
With the support and encouragement of such influential representatives of the Venetian authorities, the noisy community returned to an atmosphere of “trash and drug addiction,” but replaced the company of streetwalkers, actors, and musicians with a more sophisticated society of elite prostitutes, aristocrats, and nobles. It should be noted that the immorality of these “jokes” ranged from drunken brawls and damage to public property to the digging up of corpses, debauched parties with girls, duels, and even rape accusations (although the latter were never proven, either due to the lack of evidence or the wealth and status of the patron).
All these amusements, as well as the crème de la crème of society, combined with previous adventures and the dissatisfaction of some gentlemen with the behavior of noble commoners, contributed to the growing interest of women and girls, as well as the police, in this activity. Venetian Inquisition.
The latter is easy to comment on — these people, unlike their Spanish colleagues, did not burn heretics left and right, but performed duties similar to the duties of the modern Russian FSB — that is, they kept order, spied and were unreliable for other employees of the state machine. Things.
Paris — the capital of love and debauchery
Paris — the capital of love and debauchery
There, very easily entering the world at the expense of his friends in a friendly acting troupe, the young traveler came into contact with the Marquise de Pompadour — very famous for her intrigues and love affairs, but a very influential figure, who managed to disrespect her very gracefully without putting her in an awkward position.
There, he promised the king himself many times — Louis XV found a special place for him at one fine moment and gave him a 13-year-old girl (by the way, Casanova discovered almost entirely on the street, so the question of the humanity of this act is better left to historians and memoirists. “(This is better left to their discretion).
At the same time, among other things, he knew Kabbalism very well and was able not only to establish contacts, but also to join Masonic lodges.
And at the same time in France, as if wanting to evoke pure emotion and desire, Casanova uses Henrietta, a famous family woman, but traveling secretly, with whom he fell in love. This was the only relationship that was remembered and preserved in memory until the end of Giacomo’s life, despite its short duration (only three months).
Giacomo Casanova — lover, heartthrob, seducer, ladies” man
Another meeting took place in France — Giacomo met his brothers, with whom he soon found a common language, and went to Dresden to meet his mother, whom the beloved Venetian had not seen for more than ten years by that time.
The Shawshank Redemption — XVIII
He then began a nightly communication with a prisoner in the next cell, using pieces of cloth as paper, nails as feathers, and blackberry juice as ink. Working together, they created a passage onto the roof, through it into the prison office and down to the main entrance — but, unlike before, they were unable to open it. Then passers-by noticed them and told the gatekeeper that he had locked the people inside — and they were released!
Meanwhile, there is a more prosaic version of bribing guards.
Spy passions
Spy passions
Meanwhile, over the years, he spent more and more money on prostitutes and women, and the once sweet young man became older and less than handsome. During his contacts with De Berni, he met a certain wealthy and influential Mrs. Durf. Mrs. Durfe took him out of prison after seven years of war.
Mrs. Durfey Giacomo was “led by the nose,” and for quite a long time she supported herself through the skillful use of her knowledge in the field of alchemy and the occult. During a trip to Amsterdam, he met one of his old lovers with two children, a boy and a girl.
He allegedly planned to take her son and use him to increase his influence over Madame Durouf and transfer her soul into the child”s body. Nevertheless, taking advantage of the opportunity, he offered the child first the upbringing and education of a count, and then his escape.
Eventually, dissatisfied with Louis, he was expelled from France.
Loss of influence and involuntary travel
Loss of influence and involuntary travel
Everything immediately went wrong: ignorance of the language, lack of acquaintances and the fact that, as Casanova himself said, “in Russia they respect only those who must travel themselves.”
However, he met Catherine by chance — and many times, frustrated that he could not go beyond the role of an interlocutor, he left Russia and went to Poland. At the court of the Polish king, he was able to practically restore his former influence, but even here he lost support due to the Polish nobles killed in duels.
End of travel and return home
End of travel and return home
However, he felt new interest from the powers that be and, no longer as a courtier, but as a criminal, voluntarily left his homeland and went to Prague. It was in the Czech Republic that he wrote his memoirs, fighting boredom as a librarian.
A year after Venice lost its independence, he too died. This was the life of Giacomo Girolamo Casanova, Chevalier de Sengalt, the legendary symbol of the Venetian decline and an entire era of European history — a lover without the merits of special love.
Giacomo Casanova. the art of seduction. documentary film
