Madame de Staël at Coppet (Debucourt 1800)

The Coppet group (''Groupe de Coppet''), also known as the Coppet circle, was an informal intellectual and literary gathering centred on

Germaine de Staël Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein (; ; 22 April 176614 July 1817), commonly known as Madame de Staël (), was a French woman of letters and political theorist, the daughter of banker and French finance minister Jacques Necker and Suzan ...

during the time period between the establishment of the Napoleonic First Empire (1804) and the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * Abs ...

of 1814–1815. The name comes from

Coppet Castle Coppet Castle ( French: ''Château de Coppet'') is a château in the municipality of Coppet of the Canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is a Swiss heritage site of national significance. It gave its name to the celebrated group of several dozen ear ...

in Switzerland. The group, which broadly continued the activities of Madame de Staël's previous

salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

s, had a considerable influence on the development of nineteenth century

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostilit ...

and

romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

Stendhal Marie-Henri Beyle (; 23 January 1783 – 23 March 1842), better known by his pen name Stendhal (, ; ), was a 19th-century French writer. Best known for the novels ''Le Rouge et le Noir'' ('' The Red and the Black'', 1830) and ''La Chartreuse de ...

referred to the Coppet guests as "the Estates General of European opinion."

Participants

Around the core group which consisted of the hosts at Coppet Castle, the Necker family, that is Jacques Necker and his daughter, Germaine de Staël and her long time lover,

Benjamin Constant Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque (; 25 October 1767 – 8 December 1830), or simply Benjamin Constant, was a Franco-Swiss political thinker, activist and writer on political theory and religion. A committed republican from 1795, he backed t ...

, with her cousin by marriage,

Albertine Necker de Saussure Albertine Adrienne Necker de Saussure (9 April 1766, in Geneva – 13 April 1841, in Mornex, on the Salève, near Geneva) was a Genevan and then Swiss writer and educationalist, and an early advocate of education for women. Life Albertine Necker ...

Wilhelm von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand von Humboldt (, also , ; ; 22 June 1767 – 8 April 1835) was a Prussian philosopher, linguist, government functionary, diplomat, and founder of the Humboldt University of Berlin, which was named afte ...

Jean de Sismondi Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

, Charles Victor de Bonstetten,

Prosper de Barante {{wiktionary, prosper Prosper may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places in the United States * Prosper, Minnesota, an unincorporated community * Prosper, North Dakota, an unincorporated community * Prosper, Oregon, an unincorporated community * Prosper, Texa ...

Mathieu de Montmorency Mathieu Jean Felicité de Montmorency, duc de Montmorency-Laval (10 July 1767 – 24 March 1826) was a French statesman during the French Revolution and Bourbon Restoration. He was elected as the youngest member of the National Assembly in 178 ...

and

August Wilhelm Schlegel August Wilhelm (after 1812: von) Schlegel (; 8 September 176712 May 1845), usually cited as August Schlegel, was a German poet, translator and critic, and with his brother Friedrich Schlegel the leading influence within Jena Romanticism. His trans ...

, there was a stream of international men and women visitors of influence. These included: *Ernestine von Arco, madame

Maximilian von Montgelas Maximilian Karl Joseph Franz de Paula Hieronymus de Garnerin de la Thuile, Count von Montgelas (german: Maximilian Karl Joseph Franz de Paula Hieronymus de Garnerin de la Thuille Graf von Montgelas; 12 September 1759 Munich – 14 June 1838 ...

Odilon Barrot Camille Hyacinthe Odilon Barrot (; 19 July 1791 – 6 August 1873) was a French politician who was briefly head of the council of ministers under President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte in 1848–49. Early life Barrot was born at Villefort, Lozè ...

Louis de Beaupoil de Saint-Aulaire Louis-Clair de Beaupoil comte de Saint-Aulaire (9 April 1778, in Baguer-Pican – 13 November 1854, in Paris) was a French politician. Life After attending school at the École des ponts et chaussées and polytechnique (from which he gradu ...

* Andrew Bell * Wilhelmine von Biron von Kurland, Herzogin von Sagan *Claude Ignace de Barante *

Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...

* Ludovico di Breme * Victor de Broglie *Sir

Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux, (; 19 September 1778 – 7 May 1868) was a British statesman who became Lord Chancellor, Lord High Chancellor and played a prominent role in passing the 1832 Reform Act and 1833 Slavery ...

Friederike Brun Friederike Brun, née ''Münther'' (3 June 1765 – 25 March 1835), was a Danish author and salonist. She was married to the affluent merchant Constantin Brun and during the Danish Golden Age of the first half of the 19th century she arranged lite ...

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

. *

John Campbell, 1st Marquess of Breadalbane Lieutenant-General John Campbell, 1st Marquess of Breadalbane FRS (30 March 1762 – 29 March 1834), known as John Campbell until 1782 and as The Earl of Breadalbane and Holland between 1782 and 1831, was a Scottish soldier and landowner. Back ...

Adelbert von Chamisso Adelbert von Chamisso (; 30 January 178121 August 1838) was a German poet and botanist, author of ''Peter Schlemihl'', a famous story about a man who sold his shadow. He was commonly known in French as Adelbert de Chamisso (or Chamissot) de Bonc ...

François-René de Chateaubriand François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand (4 September 1768 – 4 July 1848) was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian who had a notable influence on French literature of the nineteenth century. Descended from an old aristocrati ...

Carl von Clausewitz Carl Philipp Gottfried (or Gottlieb) von Clausewitz (; 1 June 1780 – 16 November 1831) was a Prussian general and military theorist who stressed the "moral", in modern terms meaning psychological, and political aspects of waging war. His mo ...

*Jean-Barthélémy Le Couteulx de Canteleu (1749-1818) *

Humphry Davy Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for ...

Jane Davy Jane Davy or Jane Kerr or Jane Apreece (5 February 1780 – 8 May 1855) was a British heiress and socialite who, after having lost a rich husband, married Sir Humphry Davy. Life Jane Kerr's (Davy's) father was Charles Kerr, a Scottish merchant w ...

, born Kerr * Etienne Dumont *Mary Elliot * Sarah Sophia Fane, Countess of Jersey *Marc Etienne Frossard (1757-1815) *David François Gaudot (1756-1836) *Jean-Antoine Gauvin, dit Gallois (1761- 1828) *Charles de Gentil de Langalerie (1751–1835) * Joseph Marie de Gérando *

François Guizot François Pierre Guillaume Guizot (; 4 October 1787 – 12 September 1874) was a French historian, orator, and statesman. Guizot was a dominant figure in French politics prior to the Revolution of 1848. A conservative liberal who opposed the ...

Emma, Lady Hamilton Dame Emma Hamilton (born Amy Lyon; 26 April 176515 January 1815), generally known as Lady Hamilton, was an English maid, model, dancer and actress. She began her career in London's demi-monde, becoming the mistress of a series of wealthy me ...

* Frederic-Cesar de La Harpe *

John Cam Hobhouse John Cam Hobhouse, 1st Baron Broughton, (27 June 1786 – 3 June 1869), known as Sir John Hobhouse, Bt, from 1831 to 1851, was an English politician and diarist. Early life Born at Redland near Bristol, Broughton was the eldest son of Sir ...

Claude Hochet Claude Hochet (24 November 1772 – 3 October 1857) was a French journalist, author and civil servant who was secretary-general of the Conseil d'État from 1816 to 1839. He is best known as a friend of Madame de Staël, Benjamin Constant, Abel-Fra ...

* Charles Huchet de La Bédoyère *Carolina Friederica von Humboldt *Countess Dorota Barbara Jablonowska, Madame

Józef Klemens Czartoryski Prince Józef Klemens Czartoryski (1740–1810) was a Polish nobleman (szlachcic) who owned Korets Castle. He was a Knight of the Order of the White Eagle, awarded in 1767. He became the Grand Stalininkas of Lithuania in 1764, Klucznik (Stewa ...

Camille Jordan Marie Ennemond Camille Jordan (; 5 January 1838 – 22 January 1922) was a French mathematician, known both for his foundational work in group theory and for his influential ''Cours d'analyse''. Biography Jordan was born in Lyon and educated at ...

Arnail François, marquis de Jaucourt Arnail François, marquis de Jaucourt, '' comte de l'Empire'' (14 November 17575 February 1852) was a French aristocrat and politician. Biography Military career and Revolution Jaucourt was born in Tournon (Seine-et-Marne) of a Protestant family ...

*Wiktor Pavlovich Kotschubei *Juliane von Krüdener * Alexandre de Laborde *

Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869), was a French author, poet, and statesman who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic and the continuation of the Tricolore as the flag of France. ...

* Matthew Gregory Lewis *Aline Lugo *Jacob Frédéric Lullin de Châteauvieux *Sir James Mackintosh *Louis Manuel *

Friedrich von Matthisson Friedrich von Matthisson (23 January 1761 – 12 March 1831) was a German poet, an early member of the German Romantic movement. His best known poem is probably ''Adelaide'', which was set to music by Beethoven. Biography He was born at Hohendod ...

*Luise von Matthisson *Jakob Heinrich Meister *

Francesco Melzi d'Eril Francesco Melzi d'Eril, Duke of Lodi, Count of Magenta (6 March 1753 – 16 January 1816) was an Italian politician and patriot, serving as vice-president of the Napoleonic Italian Republic (1802–1805). He was a consistent supporter of the I ...

* Dorothea Mendelssohn * John Izard Middleton *

Johannes von Müller Johannes von Müller (3 January 1752 – 29 May 1809) was a Swiss historian. Biography He was born at Schaffhausen, where his father was a clergyman and rector of the gymnasium. In his youth, his maternal grandfather, Johannes Schoop (1696–17 ...

*Alexis de Noville *

Adam Gottlob Oehlenschläger Adam; el, Ἀδάμ, Adám; la, Adam is the name given in Genesis 1-5 to the first human. Beyond its use as the name of the first man, ''adam'' is also used in the Bible as a pronoun, individually as "a human" and in a collective sense as " ...

Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne, (2 July 178031 January 1863), known as Lord Henry Petty from 1784 to 1809, was a British statesman. In a ministerial career spanning nearly half a century, he notably served as Home Secretary ...

* Charles Pictet de Rochemont * Alfonso Pignatelli de Aragon * Gennaro Pignatelli, principe di Belmonte *

John William Polidori John William Polidori (7 September 1795 – 24 August 1821) was a British writer and physician. He is known for his associations with the Romantic movement and credited by some as the creator of the vampire genre of fantasy fiction. His most suc ...

* Prince Augustus of Prussia *

Charles-Victor Prévot, vicomte d'Arlincourt Charles-Victor Prévot, vicomte d'Arlincourt (26 September 1788 — 22 January 1856) was a French novelist, born at the Château de Mérantais, Magny-les-Hameaux, Yvelines. In the 1820s, the popularity of this author, upon whom was bestowed t ...

Juliette Récamier Jeanne Françoise Julie Adélaïde Récamier (; 3 December 1777 – 11 May 1849), known as Juliette (), was a French socialite whose salon drew people from the leading literary and political circles of early 19th-century Paris. As an icon of ...

*Guillaume Anne de Constant Rebecque, seigneur de Villars (1750-1832) *

François Dominique de Reynaud, Comte de Montlosier François Dominique de Reynaud, Comte de Montlosier (April 16, 1755 in Clermont-Ferrand – December 9, 1838), was a notable French politician and political writer during the First French Empire, Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy. He was the y ...

Adolph Ribbing {{Infobox noble, type , name = Adolph Ribbing , title = Count , image = Adolph Ribbing.jpg , caption = Adolph Ludvig Ribbing , alt = , CoA = , more = n ...

Carl Ritter Carl Ritter (August 7, 1779September 28, 1859) was a German geographer. Along with Alexander von Humboldt, he is considered one of the founders of modern geography. From 1825 until his death, he occupied the first chair in geography at the Univer ...

Albert de Rocca Albert Jean Michel de Rocca (1788 – 31 January 1818) was a French lieutenant during the Napoleonic Wars. He was also the second husband of Anne Louise Germaine de Staël. Biography De Rocca was born in Geneva, Republic of Geneva, in 1788. He se ...

Samuel Rogers Samuel Rogers (30 July 1763 – 18 December 1855) was an English poet, during his lifetime one of the most celebrated, although his fame has long since been eclipsed by his Romantic colleagues and friends Wordsworth, Coleridge and Byron. H ...

*Sarah Rogers, sister of Samuel Rogers *Sir

Samuel Romilly Sir Samuel Romilly (1 March 1757 – 2 November 1818), was a British lawyer, politician and legal reformer. From a background in the commercial world, he became well-connected, and rose to public office and a prominent position in Parliament. ...

*Elzéar de Sabran (1774-1846) *

Aleksander Antoni Sapieha Prince Aleksander Antoni Sapieha (1773-1812) was a Polish nobleman, miecznik of the Duchy of Warsaw, naturalist, traveler, politician, chamberlain and adjutant of Emperor Napoleon I. Children * Anna Zofia Sapieha (1799-1864), wife of Adam J ...

Pedro de Sousa Holstein, 1st Duke of Palmela D. Pedro de Sousa Holstein, 1st Duke of Faial and Palmela (8 May 1781–12 October 1850) was one of the most important Portuguese diplomats and statesmen in the first half of the 19th century. He also served as the country's first modern Prime ...

*Spalding sisters *

Jean-Baptiste-Antoine Suard Jean-Baptiste-Antoine Suard (15 January 1732 – 20 July 1817) was a French journalist, translator and man of letters during the Age of Enlightenment. He was born in Besançon and died in Paris. Biography Suard was incarcerated in the ''Royal F ...

Christian Friedrich Tieck Christian Friedrich Tieck (14 August 1776 – 24 May 1851), often known only as Friedrich Tieck, was a German sculptor and a occasional artist in oils. His work was primarily figurative and includes both public statuary and private commissions ...

*Prince Peter Iwanowitsch Tufiakin *

Henry Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland of Holland, and 3rd Baron Holland of Foxley PC (21 November 1773 – 22 October 1840), was an English politician and a major figure in Whig politics in the early 19th century. A grandson of Henry ...

Zacharias Werner Friedrich Ludwig Zacharias Werner (November 18, 1768 – January 17, 1823) was a German poet, dramatist, and preacher. As a dramatist, he is known mainly for inaugurating the era of the so-called "tragedies of fate". Biography Werner was born at ...

* Charles de Villers *

George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey, GCH, PC (19 August 1773 – 3 October 1859), previously George Villiers and styled Viscount Villiers until 1805, was a British courtier and Conservative politician from the Villiers family. He added ...

Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (; 16 April 1755 – 30 March 1842), also known as Madame Le Brun, was a French portrait painter, especially of women, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Her artistic style is generally considered part o ...

Caspar Voght Caspar Voght (17 November 1752 – 20 March 1839), later Caspar Reichsfreiherr von Voght (more commonly known as Baron Caspar von Voght), was a German merchant and social reformer from Hamburg (today Germany). Together with his business part ...

Participants

See also

References

Further reading