BOULAINVILLIERS, (HENRI DE)

Etat de la France dans lequel on voit tout ce qui regarde le gouvernement ecclésiastique, le militaire, la justice, les finances, le commerce, les manufactures, le nombre des habitans, & en général tout ce qui peut faire connoître à fond cette monarchie. Vol. 1 & 2 (of 3).

London, T. Wood & S. Palmer, 1727.

Folio (350 x 240 mm). Uniformly bound in two contemporary full calf bindings with five raised bands and richly gilt spines. A few scratches to to spines and boards. Small paper-label pasted on to top of spines. All edges coloured in red. Ex-libris pasted on to pasted down front end-papers. Internally very fine and clean. (4), 14, XXVII, (3), 182, (2), 38, (5) pp. + folded map of France; (2), 581, (5) pp.

A fine set of the first two volumes (out of three) of Boulainvillier's posthumously published work on various aspects of the French monarchy during the early 18th century.

"BOULAINVILLIERS, HENRI, Comte de (1658–1722), French political writer, was born at St Saire in Normandy in 1658. He was educated at the college of Juilly, and served in the army until 1697. He wrote a number of historical works (published after his death), of which the most important were the following: Histoire de l’ancien gouvernement de la France (La Haye, 1727); État de la France, avec des mémoires sur l’ancien gouvernement (London, 1727); Histoire de la pairie de France (London, 1753); Histoire des Arabes (1731). His writings are characterized by an extravagant admiration of the feudal system. He was an aristocrat of the most pronounced type, attacking absolute monarchy on the one hand and popular government on the other. He was at great pains to prove the pretensions of his own family to ancient nobility, and maintained that the government should be entrusted solely to men of his class. He died in Paris on the 23rd of January 1722." (Encyclopedia Britannica).

Order-nr.: 61271