Born in Geneva in 1712, Jean-Jacques Rousseau arrived in Annecy at age 16. Here, he met the famous Madame de Warens, who would shape the rest of his life. The older woman gave him not only lodging, but also access to her bed. In The Confessions, Rousseau recalls the first time they met: 'It was a passage at the back of the house, [...] at the end was a private door which opened into the church of the Cordeliers. Madame de Warens was just passing this door; but on hearing my voice, instantly turned about. What an effect did the sight of her produce!' Later in the book, he expressed a wish that a 'baluster of gold' marked the spot. His wish partly came true in 1928, two centuries after that encounter. A stone bust of the writer, along with a small fountain, now stand there. Rousseau stayed with de Warens for only two years, but they met up again at Les Charmettes in Chambéry. It was in this city that the philosopher was supplanted by her new lover – another young man!
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