Michel-Jean Sedaine

Sedaine was born in Paris. His father, an architect, died when Sedaine was quite young and left no fortune to inherit, the young Sedaine therefore began life as a mason's labourer. He was at last taken as pupil by an architect whose kindness he eventually repaid, by the help he was able to give to his benefactor's grandson, the painter David. Meanwhile, he had done his best to repair his deficiencies of education, and in 1750 he published a Recueil de pièces fugitives, which included fables, songs and pastorals.

• Illustration — Bust of Michel-Jean Sedaine, 1775 CE. From Paris, France. By Augustin Pajou. The Victoria and Albert Museum, London Sedaine's work in opéra comique attracted the attention of Diderot, and two plays of his were accepted and performed at the Théâtre Français. The first and longest, the Philosophe sans le savoir, was acted in 1765; the second, a lively one-act piece, La gageure imprévue in 1768. These two at once took their place as stock pieces and are still ranked among the best French plays, each of its class. Except these two pieces little or nothing of his has kept the stage. He wrote two historical dramas, Raymond V, comte de Toulouse ou L'épreuve inutile, and Maillard, ou Paris sauvé. Sedaine became a member of the Academy (1786), and secretary for architecture of the fine arts division.

Anne Guéret and her sister Louise Catherine Guéret were orphaned as children but were adopted by Sedaine. He died in Paris in 1797.