Conversations with Saint-Germain

[Paul Ferguson]

The conversations between the [b]Comte de St. Germain[/b] and [b]Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel[/b] (Landgrave of Hesse) are preserved primarily in Prince Charles’s memoirs, Mémoires de mon temps (1861). St. Germain spent the final years of his life (roughly from 1779 until his death in 1784) living under the patronage of Prince Charles at his residence in Eckernförde and Schleswig, working on alchemy, textile dyeing, and natural philosophy. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Mémoires text here:

https://archive.org/details/mmoiresdemonte00karluoft

    Key Themes of Their Conversations

• [b]True Identity and Lineage:[/b] St. Germain told Prince Charles that he was [b]88 years old[/b] upon his arrival in Schleswig and claimed to be the son of [b]Prince Francis II Rákóczi[/b] (Ragoczy), the Prince of Transylvania, and that he had been raised under the care of Gian Gastone de' Medici (the last of the Medicis). He explained his adopted name as a clever play: when his half-brothers became subjects of the Emperor, he called himself Sanctus Germano ("the Holy Brother"). [1, 2]
  
• [b]Practical Science vs. Mysticism:[/b] While popular lore painted St. Germain as an immortal mystic, his daily conversations and work with Prince Charles focused heavily on practical chemistry, metallurgy, gem-stone purification, and industrial dyeing techniques. Prince Charles initially cared little for these inventions, but was gradually won over by St. Germain's deep earnestness and encyclopedic knowledge. [1, 2]
  
• [b]Religious Discussions and Jesus Christ:[/b] Prince Charles, a deeply devoted Christian, wrote about a notable disagreement where St. Germain made remarks about Jesus Christ that pained the Prince. When Charles expressed his hurt, St. Germain reportedly reflected and promised: "Jesus Christ is nothing, but to give you pain is something; I promise you therefore that I will never again speak of him to you." [1]
  
• [b]Deathbed Message:[/b] St. Germain died on [b]February 27, 1784[/b], in Eckernförde while Prince Charles was away in Kassel. Before or during his final illness, he sent a message through the physician Lossau to reassure Charles that he was not opposed to the true Christian religion—though this moment was later mythologized differently by critics and esoteric historians. [1, 2, 3]