Count of St. Germain

The Comte de Saint Germain (kɔ̃t də sɛ̃ ʒɛʁmɛ̃; 1691 or 1712 – 27 February 1784) was a European adventurer who achieved prominence in European high society of the mid-18th century due to his interest and achievements in science, alchemy, philosophy, and the arts. St. Germain used a variety of names and titles, including the Marquis de Montferrat, Comte Bellamarre, Chevalier Schoening, Count Weldon, Comte Soltikoff, Manuel Doria, Graf Tzarogy, and Prinz Ragoczy. While his real name is unknown, and his birth and background obscure, towards the end of his life he claimed that he was a son of Prince Francis II Rákóczi of Transylvania. He is said to have made far-fetched claims (such as being 500 years old), leading Voltaire to dub him "The Wonderman", and that "He is a man who does not die, and who knows everything". Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel is recorded as having called him "one of the greatest philosophers who ever lived". The count claimed to be a son of Francis II Rákóczi, the Prince of Transylvania, which could possibly be unfounded. However, this would account for his wealth and fine education. The will of Francis II Rákóczi mentions his eldest son, Leopold George, who was believed to have died at the age of four. The speculation is that his identity was safeguarded as a protective measure from the persecutions against the Habsburg dynasty. At the time of his arrival in Schleswig in 1779, St. Germain told Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel that he was 88 years old. This would place his birth in 1691 when Francis II Rákóczi was 15 years old. St. Germain was supposedly educated in Italy by the last of the Medicis, Gian Gastone, his alleged mother's brother-in-law. He was believed to be a student at the University of Siena. Throughout his adult life, he deliberately spun a confusing web to conceal his actual name and origins, using different pseudonyms in the different places of Europe that he visited. The Marquis de Crequy declared that St.