"Cadet Rousselle" was a popular French song that satirized a French bailiff by the name of Guillaume (William) Rousselle, widely known as Cadet Rousselle.Guillaume Rousselle was born in Orgelet, Jura on April 30, 1743, and died in Auxerre on January 28, 1807. In his 1945 book on Cadet Rousselle, Pierre Pinsseau details Rousselle's life in Auxerre beginning with his 1783 arrival in the town. The circumstances and exact date of Guillaume Rousselle's arrival in Auxerre are unknown, but it is believed to be 1763, one year after the death of his father. His first jobs included work as a domestic servant and lackey and later he worked as a bailiff's clerk.

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