Description:

30 Spanish Prisoners! Interesting Military Documents from Franco-Spanish War Campaign, 1641

A small lot relating to a campaign of the Franco-Spanish War campaign led by Henri II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé (1588-1646), three pieces. Provenance information includes an archival folder from Goodspeed's Book Shop (Boston, Massachusetts) and a French catalog description related to the documents in question.

The lot includes:

1. Two manuscript documents in French signed by various military, police, and civic officials during the Franco-Spanish War, a corollary conflict enveloped within the greater Thirty Years' War, regarding room and board for 30 Spanish prisoners. July 20-29, 1641. Various places including Béziers, France and "au camp de Claira." On watermarked laid paper. The two documents are each one page and stuck together at lower left. Expected wear including flattened folds, light toning, minor chipped and darkened edges, and scattered former collector's pencil inscriptions, else near fine. The largest document measures 7.75" x 11.75."

The first document is boldly signed by two police officials from Béziers, in southwestern France, Raoul Taille and Jacques Besson; their signatures "Taille" and "Besson" appear just below the text. They were directed by "Monseigneur le prince" (Henri II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé) to secure "sustenance" for 30 Spanish prisoners boarded at the house of Pierre Baboulet since mid-June, 1641. Signed at Béziers, July 28, 1641. The second document (attached to the first) consists of three testimonials, dated July 20th, July 24th, and July 29th, regarding the Spanish prisoners; the first paragraph refers to "s altesse" or "his highness," the Prince de Condé.

2. An address leaf inscribed "To Monsieur / Monsieur de la Mote Lieutenant / General of the King's Armies" on one half of the leaf. With remnants of the original black wax seal at lower right. Expected wear including foxing and loss. 8.5" x 6.3875." Unrelated to French Franco-Spanish War military leader Henri II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé but apparently associated with his son, Louis de Bourbon, "Le Grand Condé " (1621-1686), according to a former collector's note.

Henri II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé was the head of the senior-most cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, making him a "prince du sang," or "prince of the blood." The Prince de Condé was heir presumptive to the French throne during the 1590s, and was second-in-line to the French throne from 1611-1638. He played a significant leadership role during the minority of Louis XIII, though he eventually opposed the regency of the young king's mother, Marie de' Medici. He served as Governor of Burgundy from 1631 until his death in 1646.

The Prince de Condé became one of the most well-known French commanders of the Franco-Spanish War, commanding French armies in the Pyrenees after 1638. The Prince de Condé led several notable military campaigns at the French/Spanish border. The failed siege of Fontarrabie [Hondarrabia, Spain] was a humiliating upset in which Condé's French forces--almost double the number of Spanish defenders--were routed and fled. Yet this reversal was followed by two important victories in the Pyrénées-Orientales department of southwestern France: the July 19, 1639 fall of the Spanish fortress at Salses [Salses-le-Château, France], and the June 29, 1641 fall of Elne [Elne, France]. Elne is located approximately 77 km southwest of Béziers, where the Spanish soldiers were kept in June and July 1641.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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