Beaumarchais was born in Paris, France, on January 24, 1732. In 1753, working as an apprentice to his watchmaker father, Beaumarchais devised a mechanism that was recognized by the Academy of Sciences. Two years later, he was appointed watchmaker to the royal court of Louis XV. Upon marrying a widow, he became Clerk Controller and also inherited the property of Beaumarchais, from where he took his name. He became wealthy through business associations and purchased the title of Secretary of the King, which made him a member of the French nobility.

Beaumarchais traveled to Spain in 1764, after his sister's fiancé refused to marry her, where he revealed the fiancé's treachery. This trip gave him the opportunity to observe Spanish life and culture, including the wastefulness of the nobility and the abuses of the government. He returned to Paris in 1767 to present his play Eugénie...