The Count of St Germain
A charming courtier of the 1700s was said never to age, and to have met people dead for centuries.
What was reported
The Count of St Germain appeared in European high society in the 1740s: a gifted musician, linguist and chemist with mysterious wealth, who became a favourite of Louis XV in Paris. His real name and origins were never known.
Rumours spread that he had found the elixir of life, that he was hundreds of years old and had met figures from history. He reportedly died in Germany in 1784, yet people claimed to meet him for decades afterwards.
Explanations offered
Historians see him as a talented adventurer who encouraged an air of mystery around himself; some of the wildest stories came from jokes and impersonators. Later occult movements, such as Theosophy, made him an immortal spiritual master, which kept the legend alive.
- When
- From the 1740s
- Where
- Paris, France
- Witnesses
- European courts and diarists
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.