Gottfried van Swieten

Dutch noble, diplomat, librettist and music patron

Gottfried Freiherr van Swieten (29 October 1733 – 29 March 1803) was a Dutch-born diplomat, librarian, and government official who served the Holy Roman Empire during the 18th century. He was an enthusiastic amateur musician and is best remembered today as the patron of several great composers of the Classical era, including Carl Phillip Emanuel Bach, Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven.

Read more about this composer on Wikipedia.