made his first appearance at Madrid in an oratorio, while his earliest opera was performed there under the title of "Il Preso." Such was his success in the Spanish capital that he was quickly recognised as one of the greatest tenors his country had ever produced.

The following year, 1792, found France overtaken by a succession of catastrophes: the invasion by Austria and Prussia, the storming of the Tuileries, the September massacre, and that tragic end of the French Monarchy, for the time being, with the execution of Louis XVI.

The last years of the eighteenth century were spent by the elder Garcia in building up an ever-increasing reputation throughout Spain; while during this period European history continued to raise fresh landmarks for future generations to bear in wondering memory, for when he was nineteen there came the execution of Robespierre, and the splendid victory of Lord Howe over the French fleet, followed in 1789 by another glorious naval achievement in the Battle of the Nile.

The first years of the new century brought with them the close of the elder Garcia's bachelor life with his romantic marriage to Joaquina Sitchès. The story of the meeting and courtship is one of singular charm.

Joaquina, who was Spanish by birth, was gifted with a somewhat mystical temperament, and early declared her wish to pass her life in a convent. Her parents raised no objection to her taking the veil, and she forthwith commenced her novitiate.

In due course the time arrived when, according to custom, she must go out into the world again for a while, in order to prove whether her desire for the religious life was genuine. Accordingly the beautiful young novice went much into society, making her appearance at balls, parties, theatres, and the other gaieties of the capital.

One evening she was taken for the first time to hear Garcia sing. He made a deep impression upon her, and an introduction followed, which led to her falling violently in love with the singer. He on his side became no less completely a victim to her charms, and lost no time in declaring his passion, and that was the end, or should one not perhaps say, the beginning? Joaquina paid a last visit to the convent to bid good-bye to the mother-superior, and soon afterwards the lovers were united.

Señorita Sitchès was possessed of great natural gifts as a singer, and after her marriage became desirous of associating herself with his career. She therefore determined to put her musical talents to use and went on the stage, where she soon became a worthy second to her husband.

And so we come to the year 1805, which brings with it the birth of a son, the subject of this Memoir.

MANUEL GARCIA'S MOTHER.

CHAPTER II.

CHILDHOOD IN SPAIN.

(1805-1814.)

MANUEL PATRICIO RODRIGUEZ GARCIA—to give his full name—was born on March 17, 1805, four days before the death of Greuze. The place of his birth was not Madrid, as has been so often stated, but Zafra, in Catalonia.

What of the musical world in 1805? Beethoven had not yet completed his thirty-seventh year, Schubert was a boy of eight, Auber, Bishop, Charles Burney (who had been born in 1726), Callcott, Cherubini, Dibdin, Halévy, "Papa" Haydn, Meyerbeer, Paganini, Rossini, Spohr, Weber, these were all living, and many of them had yet to become famous. As for Chopin, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Brahms, they were not even born; while Gounod, Wagner, and Verdi were still mere schoolboys when Garcia was a full-blown operatic baritone.

The year of Manuel's birth was the one in which the elder Garcia composed one of his greatest successes, a mono-drama entitled "El Poeta Calculista." It was this work which contained the song that achieved such popularity throughout Spain, "Yo che son contrabandista." When the tenor used to sing this air he would accompany himself upon the guitar, and by the fire and verve with which the whole performance was given, he made the audiences shout themselves hoarse with excitement.

Among the most enthusiastic of his listeners were the weak old dotard Charles IV., King of Spain, and his son, the bigoted and incompetent Ferdinand, who had already made himself a popular favourite and commenced his intrigues against the Throne. Above all, one must not forget Don Manuel de Godoy, Prince of the Peace, who was carrying on a shameful intercourse with the Queen, and was undoubtedly at the time the most powerful man in the kingdom.

The two most faithful allies of England at the beginning of the nineteenth century were the small kingdoms of Portugal and Sweden.

In view of the sea-power which the Island Empire had gained since the Battle of Trafalgar, Napoleon decided that the strength of this alliance must be broken. Accordingly, on October 29, 1807, the Treaty of Fontainebleau was signed, by which it was agreed that the combined armies of France and Spain should conquer Portugal. The little kingdom was then to be divided into three parts: the northern provinces were to be given to the King of Etruria in exchange for his dominions in Italy, which Napoleon desired to annex; the southern districts were to be formed into an independent kingdom for Godoy, the Prince of the Peace; and the central portion was to be temporarily held by France.

In pursuance of this secret treaty a French army under General Junot marched rapidly across the Peninsula.

On receiving the news that the invaders were close to Lisbon, the Prince Regent, with his mother, the mad queen, Maria I., sailed for Brazil with an English squadron. Hardly had the Regent left the Tagus when Junot entered Lisbon on November 20, meeting with a favourable reception at the hands of the Portuguese, who resented the departure of the Prince Regent, and had no idea that there was a secret design to dismember the kingdom.

When the Franco-Spanish plans had thus reached a successful point in their development, the elder Garcia decided that the time was ripe for him to seek that wider success which he was ambitious of achieving. He had already made his name in Spain both as a singer and composer; but this did not satisfy him. Paris had long been the goal on which he had set his mind. And what more favourable opportunity was likely to arise than the present, when the successes of the alliance would naturally predispose the French people to give a warm welcome to any Spaniards who visited the country at such a moment? Accordingly he made his last appearance in Madrid in a performance of oratorio, and at the close of 1807 set out for Paris.

Soon after his arrival in the French capital he had an opportunity of making his début, for on February 11 he appeared in Paër's "Griselda." How bold a stroke this was may be realised from the fact that, apart from his never having properly studied singing up to this time, he had not yet sung in Italian.

The applause of Napoleon in the French capital proved to be no less enthusiastic than had been that of Charles IV. in Madrid—indeed, so great was the tenor's success that he was appointed to the post of directeur du chant in less than three weeks, as well as becoming the leading tenor at the Théâtre Italien.

The following month brought with it the birth of his first daughter, Maria Felicita, who was destined to become famous under the name of Malibran. Some ten months later the mono-drama, "El Poeta Calculista" was given in Paris for the first time, on the occasion of the elder Garcia's benefit. Its reception may be judged from the fact that the performance of the