Viennet, Jean-Pons-Guillaume

Viennet, Jean-Pons-Guillaume (18 November 1777, Béziers; 10 July 1868, Paris), librettist, finished his classical education in his native city and went on to study naval gunnery at Brest and Lorient. He sailed on the Hercule in 1797, but his ship was attacked and rendered helpless by a pair of English cruisers before he could fire a shot, and he was held as a prisoner of war for seven months in Plymouth. Here, he filled his days by writing poetry and organizing a group of amateur actors. After…