Pierre Gruet is gone

by Marco Leeflang

Pierre Gruet (Marseille, 13 March 1917 - Yvelines, 14 November 2001).

A businessman with a great heart for Casanova. In the early 1970s he decided to create a focalpoint for Casanova studies in Venice. The palazzo Vendramin at Giudecca acquired a fine library of casanoviana and provided an opportunity to stay and study in a very friendly athmosphere. Gruet was not so much a researcher himself, but an organizer and stimulator of Casanova studies.

For almost ten years in a row casanovists from all over gathered in the venetian "Istituto Francese di Studi Storici", invited by Gruet, for a few days of excursions, debates and dinners.

Childs and Samaran were the magnets for many others (but no more than 12 at the time!) who had something to offer -- and to gain -- in Casanova studies.

By bringing these people together in a Casanova summit Gruet wanted to speed up and deepen the study of Casanova. And it worked. I think I can prove it with the statistics of the Casanoviana bibliography.

Casanova studies have been influenced negatively by the world wars, and positively by such special occasions as bicentennials, the publishing of the (true) Brockhaus text, and combined efforts like the one at the beginning of the twentieth century (Uzanne, Vèze, Ravà, Curiel, Gugitz c.s.) that led to publication of the Sirène edition -- and by what I like to call the "Gruet-wave"-- in the late seventies.

These statistics are a monument for an amiable casanovist:

distribution of CASANOVIANA publications per year in the 20th century (SOURCE: M.Leeflang: Quick Reference Guide 2002)
1900-- 7   .......
1901-- 5   .....
1902-- 9   .........
1903-- 11 ...........
1904-- 10 ..........
1905-- 6   ......
1906-- 7   .......
1907-- 15 ...............
1908-- 12 ............
1909-- 13 .............
1910-- 20 ....................
1911-- 38 ...................................... (Uzanne, Vèze, Ravà, Gugitz, Marr -wave)
1912-- 82 ..................................................................................
1913-- 59 ...........................................................
1914-- 46 ..............................................
1915-- 44 ............................................
1916-- 11 ...........
1917-- 12 ............   (W.W. I - dip)
1918-- 21 .....................
1919-- 14 ..............
1920-- 36 ....................................
1921-- 25 .........................
1922-- 32 ................................
1923-- 88 ........................................................................................
1924-- 35 ...................................    (bicentennial of C-'s birth coming up)
1925-- 59 ...........................................................
1926-- 86 ......................................................................................
1927-- 56 ........................................................
1928-- 35 ...................................
1929-- 46 ..............................................
1930-- 48 ................................................
1931-- 47 ...............................................
1932-- 42 ..........................................
1933-- 26 ..........................
1934-- 32 ................................
1935-- 28 ............................
1936-- 15 ...............
1937-- 22 ......................
1938-- 25 .........................
1939-- 17 .................
1940-- 8   ........
1941-- 16 ................
1942-- 10 ..........  ( W.W. II - dip)
1943-- 8   ........
1944-- 14 ..............
1945-- 10 ..........
1946-- 16 ................
1947-- 17 .................
1948-- 20 ....................
1949-- 14 ..............
1950-- 16 ................
1951-- 30 ..............................
1952-- 15 ...............
1953-- 12 ............
1954-- 24 ........................
1955-- 17 .................
1956-- 32 ................................
1957-- 34 ..................................
1958-- 12 ............
1959-- 25 .........................
1960-- 33 ................................. (first BP edition)
1961-- 47 ...............................................
1962-- 40 ........................................
1963-- 40 ........................................
1964-- 34 ..................................
1965-- 38 ......................................
1966-- 31 ...............................
1967-- 44 ............................................
1968-- 42 ..........................................
1969-- 36 ....................................
1970-- 42 ..........................................
1971-- 35 ...................................
1972-- 40 ........................................
1973-- 24 ........................
1974-- 34 ..................................
1975-- 30 ..............................
1976-- 35 ...................................
1977-- 52 ....................................................  (wave of Gruet and his Istituto:)
1978-- 98 ..................................................................................................
1979-- 61 .............................................................
1980-- 78 ..............................................................................
1981-- 56 ........................................................
1982-- 26 ..........................  (C- Gleanings stops)
1983-- 25 .........................
....
1985-- 46 .............................................. (Intermédiaire has taken over)
1986-- 68 ....................................................................
1987-- 59 ...........................................................
1988-- 75 ...........................................................................
1989-- 47 ...............................................
1990-- 50 ..................................................
1991-- 64 ................................................................
1992-- 40 ........................................
1993-- 56 ........................................................
1994-- 86 ......................................................................................
1995-- 79 ...............................................................................
1996-- 61 .............................................................
1997-- 60 ............................................................
1998-- 67 ................................................................... (Bicentennial of C- death)
1999--191 ................................................................................................................(+)
                  ...............................................................................

Left: Pierre Gruet, in Venice 1977. - Photo: Marco Leeflang.

Copyright by Marco Leeflang, Utrecht 2002

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