[Count]. Hungarian adventurer, born in Werbo, Hungary; died in battle, in Madagascar, on the 28th of May 1786. He was a man of remarkable character and extraordinary fortunes. He took part in the Seven Years’ War, and in 1767 joined the Polish confederation, taking a prominent part in the campaign against the Russians until May 1769, when he was captured; about seven months later, after being confined in several Russian prisons, he was banished, first to Siberia, and then to Kamchatka. He escaped from the latter place to France in May 1771, and shortly after, by proposal of the French government, he established a colony at Madagascar, himself arriving on the island in February 1774. He was proclaimed king by the chiefs in conclave in 1776, and adopted the costume of the natives, but he fell into contention with the French government of the Isle of France, and was at last slain.
