Charles Collé

Charles Collé (1709–1783) was a French songwriter, playwright, and member of the convivial Société du Caveau. Originally trained in law, he built a career in business while gaining fame for witty, often risqué songs and light comedies. His patriotic song La Prise de Port-Mahon (1756) earned him a royal pension, and his theatrical works for the Duke of Orléans earned him the nickname “the Corneille of the parade.”

His most celebrated play, La Partie de chasse de Henri IV (1762, staged publicly in 1774), includes the enduring song Vive Henri IV. Other notable works include Dupuis et Desronais (1763) and collaborations with composers like Rameau and Monsigny.

Posthumously, his Journal historique ou Mémoires littéraires (1807) revealed his sharp and often critical views on contemporaries such as Voltaire and Rousseau. Sainte-Beuve later regarded him as both a historical and moral witness of 18th-century France.