The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, Vol. VI (of VI), "Spanish Passions": The First Complete and Unabridged English Translation, Illustrated with Old Engravings

In Short

The sixth and final volume of Giacomo Casanova’s memoirs chronicling his later life captures the legendary Venetian libertine as his youthful vigor wanes and his fortunes begin to decline. Covering his travels through Spain, Italy, and France, the narrative follows Casanova as he navigates high-stakes gambling, theatrical intrigues, local legal battles, and perilous duels. No longer the effortless conqueror of his early years, he finds himself repeatedly expelled from capitals, betrayed by duplicitous companions, and forced to rely on his wits to survive. The volume culminates in his ultimate exile from Venice and his quiet twilight years as a frustrated librarian in the Castle of Dux. It has endured as an unvarnished, vivid historical document that strips away the romantic myth of the eternal lover, offering instead a candid, highly detailed portrait of eighteenth-century European society and the inevitable indignities of old age.

The Story

Volume VI opens with Casanova in transit across Central Europe, having been ordered to leave Vienna before making his way through Munich, Augsburg, and Aix-la-Chapelle. Whether negotiating with shady characters over questionable jewels, defending his honor in impromptu duels, or analyzing the acting flaws of local theatre troupes, Casanova remains an astute observer of human folly. His journey soon takes him into Spain, a land he finds both captivating and alien. Traveling through rugged provinces and modest villages, he observes the stark realities of Spanish life, where local landlords charge extra for noise, peasant women wear Capuchin habits out of unyielding religious devotion, and Castilian pride governs every interaction between locals and foreign travelers.

In Madrid, Casanova attempts to re-establish his customary lifestyle of high-society ballrooms, theatrical affairs, and casual gallantry. However, his life becomes increasingly volatile. Introductions by disreputable acquaintances like Count Marazzini draw him into shady social circles, while local authorities grow suspicious of his movements. A sudden arrest lands him before the stern Alcalde Messa; Casanova stubbornly refuses to cooperate in Spanish, demanding an interpreter in Italian, French, or Latin. Though released through the intervention of well-placed acquaintances and the kindness of devoted friends, his troubles in Spain are far from over.

Moving to Barcelona, Casanova finds himself embroiled in a dangerous triangle involving the volatile mistress Nina and her lover, the Count of Ricla, who serves as Viceroy. Ignoring all prudential advice, Casanova meets Nina secretly, an indiscretion that culminates in a nighttime ambush outside her door. Ambushed by hired assassins, Casanova manages to run one of his attackers through and escape with his life, but the incident leads to his imprisonment in the fortress of Monjuich and his eventual expulsion from Spain. Crossing back into southern France, he reflects on his miraculous escape while taking refuge in the epicurean delights of Beziers and Montpellier.

The middle section of the narrative sees Casanova traversing Italy—Turin, Parma, Leghorn, Naples, Rome, and Florence—in a relentless search for stability, patron support, and romantic rekindling. In Leghorn and along the Italian post-roads, he inserts himself into the romantic entanglements of others, aiding an English traveler named Sir B. M. in pursuing a runaway mistress named Betty. In Naples, he experiences an emotional reunion with his former love Lucrezia and their grown daughter, Leonilda, whose gout-afflicted, noble husband welcomes Casanova as a fellow Freemason.

In Rome, Casanova secures access to high church officials, including key cardinals, and becomes involved in the affairs of a local convent. Under the guise of arranging marriages and securing papal dispensations for young women like Armelline, Emilie, and Scholastica, he orchestrates intimate late-night suppers fueled by wine, oysters, and theatrical disguises. Yet even as he savors these fleeting triumphs, the landscape around him becomes darker. In Florence, he watches younger cheats and sharpers prey on wealthy foreign travelers like Lord Lincoln, while his own financial security grows precarious.

As the narrative pushes toward its final chapters, Casanova’s world narrows. He spends time in Ancona and Trieste, engaging in legal disputes, observing local courtroom dramas in Gorice, and contemplating the nature of human happiness alongside figures like Count Francis Charles Coronini. Though he briefly secures a long-sought return to his beloved Venice, the reprieve is temporary; renewed controversies force him back into exile.

The volume concludes with the supplementary history of Casanova’s final years at the Castle of Dux in Bohemia, where he serves as librarian to Count Waldstein. Surrounded by a changing world—the French Revolution underway, his old friends dead, and the era of powdered wigs replaced by a new political order—the aging adventurer writes his memoirs to combat boredom and neglect, nursing grievances against rude house servants while reflecting with fierce intellectual independence on his storied past until his death in 1798.

How It Unfolds

Expulsion and the Spanish Road Forced out of Vienna, Casanova travels through Germany before embarking on a long, arduous journey into Spain. He adapts to rustic inns, observes local customs, and reflects on the peculiar pride and piety of the Spanish working class.

Troubles in Madrid Settling in the Spanish capital, Casanova mingles with dubious nobility and frequents public balls. His activities draw the scrutiny of the law, leading to his arrest by the Alcalde Messa, whom Casanova defies by stubbornly speaking only in foreign tongues.

Ambush in Barcelona Casanova’s affair with the volatile Nina triggers the wrath of her powerful lover, the Viceroy of Catalonia. After surviving a midnight knife attack outside her residence, Casanova is imprisoned in Monjuich before being unceremoniously expelled from the kingdom.

Refuge in Southern France Escaping Spain, Casanova rests in Beziers and Montpellier, indulging in French culinary culture and reflecting on the motives behind his near-assassination while enjoying the company of local scholars and hosts.

Italian Intriguing and Old Flames Traveling through Turin, Parma, and Naples, Casanova reunites with his past lover Lucrezia and their daughter Leonilda. He navigates complex family dynamics and connects with Leonilda’s aging, aristocratic husband over shared Masonic ties.

Roman Convent Escapades In Rome, Casanova uses his influence with high-ranking cardinals to institute reforms at a local convent. He engages in elaborate, romantic courtships with young women, utilizing festive suppers, punch, and men’s disguises to win their affection.

Florence and the Sharpers Residing in Florence, Casanova observes a younger generation of card sharpers and fortune hunters target unsuspecting wealthy English lords. He becomes increasingly disillusioned with the dishonorable methods of the gaming tables around him.

Trieste and the Venetian Border Casanova spends time in Trieste and Gorice, attending local legal trials and examining the nature of justice and contentment alongside local noblemen and intellectual companions.

Twilight at Dux After a brief, final return to Venice ends in renewed exile, Casanova spends his closing years as a librarian in Bohemia. Isolated and out of touch with post-revolutionary European culture, he writes his memoirs to preserve his legacy before passing away in 1798.

The People

• Giacomo Casanova: The central figure and narrator, now entering his fifty-fifth year and beyond. He wants to maintain his aristocratic standing, romantic pursuits, and intellectual freedom, but is constantly thwarted by advancing age, dwindling finances, and political exile. By the end of the narrative, he transforms from an active wanderer into a reflective, bitter chronicler of a bygone era.
• Donna Ignazia: A young Spanish woman in Madrid whose piety and affection provide Casanova with a domestic refuge during his stressful encounters with Spanish law enforcement.
• Nina: A chaotic and manipulative Italian performer living in Barcelona. She uses Casanova’s charm and reputation to provoke her lover, the Viceroy of Catalonia, ultimately causing Casanova’s violent ambush and imprisonment.
• The Count of Ricla: The Viceroy of Catalonia and Nina's wealthy benefactor. He seeks to maintain his political dignity and personal authority, which leads him to view Casanova as an intolerable rival in Barcelona.
• Alcalde Messa: A stern Spanish judicial magistrate in Madrid who attempts to interrogate Casanova, only to be frustrated by Casanova's stubborn refusal to speak Spanish during his detention.
• Lucrezia: Casanova’s former love from decades prior, who reappears in Naples as a poised, mature woman. She desires the happiness of her daughter and maintains a warm, enduring friendship with Casanova without the volatility of their youth.
• Donna Leonilda: The twenty-three-year-old daughter of Lucrezia and Casanova. She lives comfortably as the wife of an elderly, gout-ridden Neapolitan marquis, treating Casanova with profound affection and familial openness.
• Armelline: A young Roman woman whom Casanova courts during his time in Rome. She seeks a stable future through marriage while indulging in playful, festive courtships under Casanova's guidance.
• The Abbe de Bolini: A tranquil, educated young nobleman from Novara whom Casanova meets in Bologna. Indifferent to romantic drama, he serves as a calm, philosophical foil to Casanova's passionate nature.
• Leah: A sharp, intellectually curious woman in Ancona who engages Casanova in intense theoretical discussions on passion and physiology, frustrating his physical advances while testing his patience.
• The Prince de Ligne: An aristocratic contemporary whose later writings record Casanova’s final days at Dux, capturing the old adventurer’s pride, sensitivity, and stubborn refusal to adapt to the post-revolutionary world.

In Its Own Voice

When reflecting on the practical realities of survival versus theoretical morality, Casanova writes:

It is not a fact that virtue ensures happiness for the exercise of some virtues implies suffering, and suffering is incompatible with happiness.

Observing the distinct character and stark accommodations of Spanish society during his travels, he notes:

In no country in Europe do the lower orders live so contentedly on a very little as in Spain.

Near the conclusion of his life, reflecting on his fierce desire for personal autonomy amidst his waning years in Bohemia, Casanova declares:

To-day, in the seventy-third year of my life, my only desire is to live in peace and to be far from any person who might imagine that he has rights over my moral liberty, for it is impossible that any kind of tyranny should not coincide with this imagination.

What It's Really About

Beneath its surface narrative of travel, romance, and low-stakes diplomacy, Volume VI is a profound meditation on aging, mortality, and the decline of an era. The central tension of the text lies in the irreconcilable divide between Casanova’s perception of himself—a brilliant, noble, and irresistible man of honor—and the harsh realities of his changing circumstances.

The book systematically explores the fragility of social status in eighteenth-century Europe. In a world governed by arbitrary aristocratic favor and strict police surveillance, a man without land or permanent office is always one step away from a prison cell or an assassin's blade. Furthermore, the narrative confronts the hypocrisy of Enlightenment-era morality. Casanova contrasts his own pragmatic code of personal honor with the institutional corruption of judges, the greed of professional gamblers, and the vanity of courtly patrons.

Ultimately, the text asks what remains of a life dedicated entirely to pleasure and freedom once physical youth has vanished. The answer provided by these final chapters is neither simple repentance nor tragic despair, but rather an unyielding intellectual tenacity. Casanova uses his pen to construct a monument to his memory, asserting his personal freedom even as his physical world shrinks to a cold library in Dux.

Why Read It Today

Readers approaching Spanish Passions today will find a surprisingly modern and unflinching psychological portrait. Unlike stylized historical fictions that idealize the eighteenth century, Casanova’s prose offers an earthy, unsentimental look at daily life in pre-revolutionary Europe. The reader is treated to the exact costs of carriage hires, the reality of dirty roadside inns, the intricacies of regional cuisine, and the precise mechanics of tavern card games.

The primary charm of the book lies in Casanova's voice as rendered in Arthur Machen’s translation—direct, witty, highly observational, and refreshingly devoid of modern romantic hand-wringing. It feels less like reading a formal autobiography and more like listening to an exceptionally articulate, slightly cynical old uncle reminisce over wine about the times he barely escaped with his skin.

The book does present specific challenges for contemporary readers. Its sheer detail regarding minor acquaintances, legal squabbles, and obscure historical figures requires patience. Furthermore, readers must navigate eighteenth-century social attitudes regarding gender, class, and religion that are recorded without apology or modern filtering.

However, these difficulties are far outweighed by the book’s human core. Watching Casanova struggle against bad food, cold weather, arrogant officials, and his own failing body provides a moving, universal narrative. It will deeply satisfy historians, lovers of travel literature, and anyone fascinated by the reality of human aging behind a historic legend.