In Search of St Germain by Robert-James Barker
Cats: Contributors, Reference|
Some of you may recognise the name. Some of you may have been lucky enough to have come across a short story called Cabin 33 in ‘The Penguin Book of Vampires’ by an author Called Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. Some of you even persevered and were rewarded when you finally managed to get hold of the St Germain books (sadly they do not seem readily available in England). Chelsea Quinn Yarbro’s vampire Ragoczy, St Germain is a quite different creature to the vampire that modern literature likes to parade in front of us. St Germain is not the annoying preening creature that can be found within the pages of Anne Rice’s ‘Chronicles’, neither is he the bloodthirsty evil creature popularised in Stoker’s ‘Dracula’ and carried on ad infinitum by a hoard of different authors.
St Germain is a gentle creature. Though he is stronger and quicker than humans he chooses not to press this advantage. Born into his world in agony St Germain watches through sad old eyes as humanity perpetrates acts against itself more shocking than the those of any vampire. St Germain is a lover who can only really feed through the blood of those he loves. His life is ruled by a constant quest to find someone who will accept him for what he is. His knowledge and a wish to help, lead to him being drawn into dangerous positions. Often beyond his control and he relies more upon his wits and friends than he does any vampiric powers.
Of course, there is one other major difference between St Germain and his contemporaries in fiction. There really was a Comte St Germain and he is equally as enigmatic as his fictional counterpart.
In my quest for information about St Germain I have become nothing if not confused. He appears to have been around mainland Europe for a period of just over a century (112 years) in the 18th century. St Germain was alleged to have been born in 1710 and to be the legitimate son of Franz-Leopold, Prince Ragoczy of Transylvania. Indeed, St Germain introduced himself in Leipzig as Prince Ragoczy in around 1777. He also admitted to Prince Karl of Hesse that he was the son of Prince Ragoczy and had been reared and educated by the last Duc de Medici. This all fits together rather well as the Duc’s ancestor Catherine de Medici was widely rumoured to be a diabolist of some power. Although in reality she seems to have been forward thinking with a genuine concern for humanity. Both are traits shared by St Germain.
All well and good, however, The Countess V Gergy declared she saw and talked to St Germain in 1710 when he appeared as a man of about fourty five. This would make both his birth date and his claim to be the son of Franz-Leopold impossible.
A number of things are certain of St Germain. He was independently rich and fond of fabulous jewels. He claimed the ability to turn small diamonds into much larger ones and to turn base metals into gold. He was also rumoured to have made a marvelous elixir that accounted for his seemingly impossible longevity and the fact he never aged beyond a healthy fifty. The other definite was the fact he dabbled in politics.
Germain is said to have been instrumental in agreeing the Family Compact between England and France, which in turn led to the Treaty of Paris bringing the colonial wars between the two countries to a close. Germain was also involved in the Jacobite rebellion in England. At the time (1745) he had fled France after making one too many powerful enemies and was seeking asylum in England. Germain was found in possession of a Jacobite letter in London, although his defence of being framed was believed Germain was no longer welcome. This also led to St Germain being linked with the Stuarts as a possible ancestor.
Germain seemed instrumental in the enthroning of Catherine the Great of Russia. St Germain (he also used the name Graf Saltikoff) was said to have left Russia as a general sporting the imperial seal of Russia. Despite all of his meddlings in history, it is as an occultist and for his longevity that St Germain is remembered. He has been rumoured to be A knight Templar, a Rosicrucian and very important Freemason. Although St Germain denied all of this, he was definitely mixed up in freemasonry. St Germain is mentioned in a number of 18th century reports within the freemasons.
The oddest thing about St Germain is he left very little trace of himself. Lots of stories, yes. But very little physical evidence. Though he was reputed to be a wonderful musician, none of his music has survived, and the few pieces that are credited as being by him are, well, mediocre to say the least. The same for his painting, the literature of the time speaks of him as a wonderful talent though what has been left to us does not hold up to expectations.
Did Germain have miraculous powers? Who knows? His last appearance was in Paris where he warned of the coming revolution. This is where things get strange, Germains death is registered at the church of Eckernforde in 1784. However, he then turned up thirty years later in London calling himself Count Welldon and prophesying both trains and steamboats. It seems Germain then toured England with his ideas and befriended a Liverpool railway promoter called James Alistair Mackenzie. When Mackenzie quizzed him about his incredible longevity Germain replied that he was from another time and had appeared through his knowledge of the pyramids. When Mackenzie died he left instructions for his body to be entombed within a pyramid.
The last record I have been able to find of Germain is at the opening of the first railway in England. Germain warned the MP William Huskisson that his life was in danger. An hour later Huskisson fell under the wheels of Stephensons Rocket.
Could Germain be an Immortal stalking the planet? He was fond of talking about Egypt and often spoke about Jesus Christ, witnesses report he always spoke as though he had been there at the time. Maybe he was, maybe Germain is out there somewhere still trying to nudge humanity away from its more foolish decisions.
© Robert-James Barker All Rights Reserved
Penguin Book of Vampires, Edited by Chris Ryan
The Vampire Chronicles, by Anne Rice
Related Posts
- Kurten and Haarman: the German `Vampire' Killers
- Countess Erzsebet (Elizabeth) Bathory
- Vlad Tepes: A Summarised History
- Gilles de Rais
- Peter Plogojowitz: The case of the first documented 'real' vampire?
