Georges, apprenticed with his father before joining Francois in the capital. He worked for a succession of Parisian makers before opening his own shop, founded in 1821. Georges was joined by his pupil Florentine Demolliens, a 24 year old woman whose position as a violin maker caused a bit of a sensation, as women traditionally did not make violins at that point in history. Georges and Florentine eventually married, after having several children out of wed-lock, and the children were all legitimized together through baptism after the marriage. Wishing to get his name out there, Georges spent seven years traveling to Spain, Portugal, Germany, and England, and Russia, where he cultivated relationships with other makers and gained many international clients. His most notable customer was Tarisio, to whom he sold several highly skilled copies of Stradivarius and Guarnerius violins. In 1840, his wife and business partner Flornetine became ill, retiring to the countryside where she was cared for by her maid, Rose Chardon. Roses' sister, Antoineette Chardon, traveled to Paris to help Georges with the business. Their working relationship blossomed into some thing more, and Georges and Antoinettewould eventually have a son together, Marie-Joseph Chardon. In the baptism act, Georges was named the godfather, and it wasn't until adulthood that Joseph learned that Georges was in fact his father. He would carry the family name Chardon, and pass it on to his children.
Georges reputation amongst Parisian makers as well as internationally increased over the years. He secured for his eldest son with Antoinette, Adolphe, an apprenticeship with the English dealers Hart & Turner. Adolphe proved a very skilled and serious violin maker, working hard and earning Turner's respect. His younger brother, Georges II, was the exact opposite. He opposed his father's plan for him to also be a violin maker, taking money from his father and leaving home. He returned a week later like the biblical prodigal son, broke and embarrassed. Back home, he decided to specialize as a bow maker, but his father had a low opinion of his abilities and pushed him to handle the business-side of violin making. Georges II headed to London as a dealer, where he quickly turned a profit on his father's instruments but lapsed back into his lascivious habits, spending money and pursuing women. He eventually set up a business in London with his father's blessing. Around this time, Adolphe died of tuberculosis, leaving Georges without any natural-born heirs in Paris to run his shop. At this point the family splits, with the Chanot name continuing on with the English branch of the family, and the Chardon name carrying on through the Parisian branch.
In 1868 Georges Chanot retired, leaving the shop in the hands of his illegitimate son Joseph Chardon, the child of Antoinette (who Georges finally married after years of companionship when his first wife, Florentine, died). From this point on, the shop is known as Chanot-Chardon, with Joseph running things alongside his wife Genevieve. Georges remains retired in the countryside for some time, but eventually grows bored and returns to violin making. In a letter to his son, he wrote that "I intend to handle the gouge, the pen knife and the plane as long as Stradivarius did." Georges would continue to be active in the business until his death in 1883, ending his life as one of the worlds most respected violin-makers.
Chanot,Georges (1)
