Jean-Gabriel Eynard (born in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

on 28 December 1775 – died in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

on 5 February 1863) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

and huge benefactor of the Greek cause.

Biography

Jean-Gabriel Eynard although belonging to a family who had settled in Switzerland since the 17th century was actually born in Lyon, France - where his father owned a business - on 28 December 1775. During the French Revolution the family fled France and took refuge in

Rolle Rolle () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, Canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It was the seat of the district of Rolle (district), Rolle until 2006, when it became part of the district of Nyon District, N ...

, Switzerland. In 1795, Jean-Gabriel and his brother Jacques went to Genoa and both were soon heading a flourishing commercial concern. In 1800 Massena's troops entered the town and Jean-Gabriel was entrusted with their supply. In particular he furnished them with uniforms cut from the blue cloth called "bleu de Genes" whence later derives the famous garment known worldwide as "blue jeans". In 1801, he entered in a highly speculative and hazardous financial venture becoming the sole subscriber to a bond issued by the duke of Etruria. That audacious move was crowned with success and constituted the foundation of his immense fortune. Eynard3

In 1803, he moved to Florence called forth by the Queen of

Etruria Etruria () was a region of Central Italy, located in an area that covered part of what are now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and northern and western Umbria. Etruscan Etruria The ancient people of Etruria are identified as Etruscan civiliza ...

, and thence he devoted much zeal and talent to the reformation and improvement of the finances of the

Principality of Lucca and Piombino The Principality of Lucca and Piombino was created in July 1805 by Napoleon I for his beloved sister Elisa Bonaparte. It was a State located on the central Italian Peninsula (present-day Italy), reporting to the needs of Napoleonic France. Forma ...

and he was also successful with those of the Tuscan state. Under the reign of

Elisa Bonaparte Maria Anna Elisa Bonaparte Baciocchi Levoy (French: ''Marie Anne Elisa Bonaparte''; 3 January 1777 – 7 August 1820), better known as Elisa Bonaparte, was an imperial French princess and sister of Napoleon Bonaparte. She was Princess of Lucca ...

, Napoleon's sister, as Grand-Duchess of Tuscany he continued his work with much success and was showered with honours and privileges. In 1809, he spent a long time in Paris in order to await the Emperor's return having been entrusted with the mission of thanking him, on behalf of both the Mediterranean Department and the Chamber of Commerce of

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn (pronou ...

, for the nomination of Elisa as Grand Duchess. In 1810 he moved to Geneva. He was ambassador of the Geneva republic at the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

in 1815. In the following year he helped to organize the administration of

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, which he represented at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1818. Being a friend of

Ioannis Kapodistrias Count Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias (10 or 11 February 1776 – 9 October 1831), sometimes anglicized as John Capodistrias ( el, Κόμης Ιωάννης Αντώνιος Καποδίστριας, Komis Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias; russian: � ...

, he was very enthusiastic for the cause of the

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

during the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...

. He was the chief of the

philhellenes Philhellenism ("the love of Greek culture") was an intellectual movement prominent mostly at the turn of the 19th century. It contributed to the sentiments that led Europeans such as Lord Byron and Charles Nicolas Fabvier to advocate for Greek ...

community in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, and aided the revolutionaries financially. For his services to this cause, he was made a Greek citizen. He advised the new state. His recommendation of Otho of Bavaria for the throne of Greece was adopted. In 1842, he became one of the co-founders of the

National Bank of Greece The National Bank of Greece (NBG; el, Εθνική Τράπεζα της Ελλάδος) is a global banking and financial services company with its headquarters in Athens, Greece. 85% of the company's pretax preprovision profits are derived ...

. In 1839, he was one of the first Swiss to use the

daguerreotype Daguerreotype (; french: daguerréotype) was the first publicly available photographic process; it was widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process. Invented by Louis Daguerre an ...

. He had this passion until his death in 1863. He bequeathed his fortune to various charitable enterprises. He was married to

Anna Eynard-Lullin Anna Eynard-Lullin (26 May 1793 - 30 October 1868), was a Swiss philanthropist, born a citizen of Republic of Geneva.

Writing

* ''Lettres et documents officiels relatifs aux divers événements de Grèce'' (1831) * ''Vie de la baronne Krüdener'' (1849)

Notes

References

* * This work in turn cites: * Rothpletz, ''Der Genfer Jean Gabriel Eynard als Philhellene'' (“The Genevan Jean Gabriel Eynard as philhellene,” Zürich, 1900)

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eynard, Jean-Gabriel 1775 births 1863 deaths Philhellenes in the Greek War of Independence Bankers from the Republic of Geneva Swiss bankers Swiss photographers 19th-century Swiss businesspeople Naturalized citizens of Greece