death_date death_place birth_place imagesize nationality notableworks name birth_date period genre image article_title birth_name
18 may 1799 -lrb- aged 67 -rrb- paris paris 250px french '' mariage de figaro '' , '' la mère coupable '' le barbier de séville '' , '' le pierre-augustin caron de beaumarchais 24 january 1732 revolutionary france plays ; comedy and drama beaumarchais.jpg pierre beaumarchais
 pierre-augustin caron
pierre beaumarchais

pierre-augustin caron de beaumarchais -lrb- ; 24 january 1732 -- 18 may 1799 -rrb- was a french playwright , watchmaker , inventor , musician , diplomat , fugitive , spy , publisher , horticulturalist , arms dealer , satirist , financier , and revolutionary -lrb- both french and american -rrb- .
born a provincial watchmaker 's son , beaumarchais rose in french society and became influential in the court of louis xv as an inventor and music teacher .
he made a number of important business and social contacts , played various roles as a diplomat and spy , and had earned a considerable fortune before a series of costly court battles jeopardized his reputation .
an early french supporter of american independence , beaumarchais lobbied the french government on behalf of the american rebels during the american war of independence .
beaumarchais oversaw covert aid from the french and spanish governments to supply arms and financial assistance to the rebels in the years before france 's formal entry into the war in 1778 .
he later struggled to recover money he had personally invested in the scheme .
beaumarchais was also a participant in the early stages of the french revolution .
he is probably best known , however , for his theatrical works , especially the three figaro plays .
