Antoine-Alexandre Barber

Antoine-Alexandre Barbier (born January 11, 1765 in Coulommiers , † December 5, 1825 in Paris ) was a French Catholic priest, librarian and bibliographer.

At the age of 26, Barbier took over the parish of La-Ferté-sous-Jouarre in 1791 , but two years later he resigned as a result of the political changes. When in 1794 the National Convention set up a commission for the arts and sciences to sift through the confiscated books, Barbier also became a member.

Barbier was instrumental in setting up a library for the board of directors and in 1800 he was entrusted with its management. At the request of barber and his employer, Pope Pius VII released him from his priestly vows in 1801. In addition to his position as librarian, Barbier also excelled as a non-fiction author.

In 1807 Napoléon Bonaparte appointed Barbier to be his private librarian, and as such he was responsible for rebuilding several libraries. Under barber line the books collections of emerged Castle Compiègne , Fontainebleau Castle , Castle Saint-Cloud and the Louvre . Between 1814 and 1822, the years of the Restoration , Barbier also managed the Crown Library . At the age of 57, Barber was removed from office and retired. He died three years later at the age of 60 on December 5, 1825 in Paris.

Fonts (selection)

• Dictionnaire des ouvrages anonymes et pseudonymes . Paris 1806.
• Nouvelle bibliothèque d'un homme de goût . Bertrand, Paris 1808-10 (5 vols.).
• Examination critique et complément des dictionnaires historiques les pas répandus . Paris 1820 (Reprint Slatkine, Geneva 1970).

literature

• Ferdinand Höfer : Nouvelle Biographie générale . Volume 4. Firmin-Didot, Paris 1853, Sp. 443-445 ( digitized version ).

Web links

• Literature by and about Antoine-Alexandre Barbier in the catalog of the German National Library
• Writings by Barbier in the SWB