Etienne, Charles-Guillaume

Etienne, Charles-Guillaume (5 January 1777, Chamouilley; 13 March 1845, Paris), librettist, was raised by his uncle, a parish priest living near Bar-le-Duc. As a young man Etienne went to Lyon to earn a living in business, but he left this city after helping to defend it in the siege of 1793. He returned to Bar-le-Duc but went almost immediately to Paris because he was ambitious to become a journalist. The theatre captured his interest, however, and he began to write for the stage. The young…