Slave in Brittany

As I promised a few weeks ago, I will give you an introduction to the song Telemakaezh, from my last album "Roc'h".

I initially read a blog post last winter by my friend Erwan Chartier, he is a great journalist who specialises in Breton history. Erwan told the story of a woman who had found a reference in the archives, while she was researching genealogy in north west Brittany (close to Roscoff), about the presence of a black slave in Plouénan village - Paul-Gabriel Telemachus, 1757. The name Telemaque, undoubtedly comes from Cap Telemaque in Saint-Domingue, although in the certificate of baptism, it is stated that he is from Guinea. Whatever his origin, he arrived in Brittany after the capture of the British ship he was on.

A book by JP Hirrien reports that "the care of Captain Beauregard of the Grasshopper, Brest in 1757 towards his English counterpart on the captured Cumberland, had earned him the present of a negro" with a request to accept the recognition of the polished and agreeable manners which had been served against him. "He wished to keep him as a servant."

On June 22, 1757, the pirate ship "la Sauterelle" ("the Grasshopper": 200 tons and armed with 18 guns in Brest) had indeed captured the Cumberland. The Sauterelle was commanded by Pierre-François Mélissan de Beauregard, pilot and lieutenant of the King's Frigates. The young slave was then entrusted to the Rector of Plouénan. This document was found by Mrs Bordais-Fraval: "January 6th 1760, I, the undersigned Rector of the parish of Plouénan, provided the ceremonies of baptism for a black man that I had at my house since July 16th 1757, whom I have instructed in the Christian religion, and whom I baptized last July 7th at home in the hope that he would not die from the bleeding which lasted for around seventeen hours. He was presented by Sir Paul Gabriel Mesguen, priest of this parish and Marguerite Gibra and named Paul-Gabriel. This black man born on the coast of Guinea belongs to Mr. Pierre François Mélipant de Beauregard, Lieutenant of the King's Frigates, previously captain of "La Sauterelle" of Brest, having been given him by the captain of the Irish ship "The Cumberland" named Henry Berkirit, taken by the aforementioned corsair as it appears from the statement made by the said Mr. Mélipant de Beauregard at the Registry of the Admiralty of Brest July 14, 1757, not having been previously baptised, being informed of no religion and may be about twenty years old, he was declared under the name of Telemachus."

We know nothing of the rest of the life of Paul-Gabriel Telemachus, the young black exile.

I was so touched by this story that I didn't hesitate to turn it into a song, imagining the end end of his life. I must add that I've changed his name to "Telemakaezh" because "kaezh" in old breton means "slave" and now it means "poor", it also sounded better to my ears.

You can also find the lyrics and english translations in the "lyrics" section of my website.