French Book-plates Part 13

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF PETER DE HAVILLAND.]

As the Channel Islands have long belonged to Great Britain it is obviously incorrect to cla.s.s them under the Frontier provinces of France. And yet some mention must be made of them, for many book-plates used there have a distinctly French character, whilst a list of the names of some of the leading families (of French origin), will show that a collector might easily be led to mistake their plates for French:

Alles, Le Patourel, Metivier, Mauger, Le Dieu, b.i.+.c.hard, Andros, Bonamy, Brock, Blondel, Beauvoir or De Beauvoir, Carey, Cary, or Careye, De Carteret, Effard, de Jersey, de Havilland or Haviland, Gosselin, Dobree, Perchard, Le Mesurier, Mesny, Millais, Milais, Milet, Priaulx, De Sausmarez or Saumarez, Fautret, De Vie, Lihou, Guille, Le Marchant, Le Febvre, Le Roy, Le Pelley, Tupper, Le Gros, Lempriere, De Lisle, Falla, De Putron, Renouf, Le Gallienne, Naftel.

I give reproductions of three such plates, one a fine specimen of engraving, of Peter Dobree, a family long settled in Guernsey, the other a more modern plate of the Le Mesurier family, to which the fleur-de-lys and the motto give a French appearance. The motto is the same as that used on his book-plate by David Garrick, who was himself of Huguenot descent. The third is a plate of Peter de Havilland, a member of a very old Guernsey family, now represented by General de Havilland. There is a plate of this family by Skinner, of Bath, dated 1742. (See pp. 159, 160, 161.)

There are several instances of ancient French t.i.tles being held by residents in Great Britain, or our Colonies, which t.i.tles are also recognized by our heraldic authorities. As their book-plates would undoubtedly pa.s.s for French, a few explanatory notes about them may be given.

The Barony du Bois de Ferrieres may be instanced. The Du Bois was a Walloon family, whilst the De Ferrieres branch was of Huguenot descent, which removed from France to Holland at the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The family motto was _Tout par et pour Dieu_.

The Marquis de Lapasture was created a French n.o.bleman in 1768; his descendants settled in England.

The Baron de Teissier, created by French patent in 1819, was also permitted by royal authority to use that t.i.tle in Great Britain.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF THE DE VISME FAMILY.]

Another descendant of an ancient n.o.ble French family identified with this country was the Marquis Ruault de Longueville de Bucy, who was educated at Eton and Cambridge, and served in the Bechua.n.a.land Expedition with Methuen's Horse.

This marquis (the 11th in descent) belongs to a family whose history is full of curious and romantic vicissitudes. The first Marquis de Bucy et Merval was created in 1602, he being the direct descendant of the ancient feudal Lords of Bucy, successive holders of the Marquisate were Lords-in-Waiting to Louis XIII. and Louis XV. Charles Marc, the 8th marquis, was a Captain in the French King's Musqueteers, a court post of considerable importance under the _ancien regime_. During the Reign of Terror he escaped to England, but his wife, Marie Ruault, Marquise de Gamaches, in her own right, was captured and guillotined with Marie Antoinette.

The 9th Marquis, son of the above, was invited by Napoleon I. to return to France, which he did, served as Major in the celebrated Cuira.s.siers de la Garde, and died a soldier's death at Waterloo. He was the grandfather of the present holder of the t.i.tle.

The motto of the family is singularly appropriate to its history: _Pour le roi souvent--pour la patrie toujours_.

The next family to mention in this connection is one which, though thoroughly identified with this country, carries arms proclaiming their French origin to even the most casual observer. Indeed the Counts de Vismes (or de Visme) a.s.serted their descent from royalty itself, as evidenced by the first quarter, _d'azur semee de fleur-de-lys or_, for France ancient, whilst the motto _Mont Joie St. Denis_, and the supporters, two angels, also indicate French royalty. (See page 163.)

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF G. DE VISME.]

The family of De Visme is descended from the sovereign Counts of Ponthieu (dating since the eighth century) of the Blood Royal of France, and the head of the family has, by usage on the continent, borne the t.i.tle of prince. The t.i.tle of Count de Visme has also been recognized by the successive governments of France, although the family has long been resident in England, and has furnished many distinguished officers to our army.

Here is another plate of a Frenchman settled in England, and rather more English than the majority of Englishmen themselves.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF THE CHEVALIER DE CHATELAIN.]

The Chevalier de Chatelain was a prolific author: poems, essays, and letters without number, flowed from his pen; he translated some of Shakespeare's plays into French, and endeavoured to explain Victor Hugo's works to our countrymen. Finally he wrote poems in praise of his deceased wife, Madame Clara de Chatelain, _nee_ Clara de Pontigny.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF THE BARON DE MORIENSART.

(A Specimen of Flemish Heraldry of the seventeenth century.)]

Probably few people have read the praises of this good lady, but she appears to have been a remarkable person, an accomplished musician, a clever linguist, and, what is more to the point, she was for thirty-three years the loving wife of the chevalier, who was enabled, through her amiability, to claim and obtain the Dunmow Flitch in 1855 for their marital felicity.

As for the chevalier himself, he appears to have been a kindly, fussy, well-read old gentleman, seriously afflicted with the _cacoethes scribendi_.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

CHAPTER X.

ECCLESIASTICAL EX-LIBRIS.

So long as the government of France was monarchical, it was largely influenced by the priests, and her most famous statesmen were such princes of the Church as Richelieu, Mazarin, De Retz, Rohan-Soubize, La Rochefoucauld, and Talleyrand-Perigord. Whether their power was always exercised solely for the good of France is not a question to be discussed here, but, speaking generally, it is certain that they did much to encourage the progress of art, science, and literature.

Some of the finest libraries in old France were formed by cardinals and bishops; Richelieu and Mazarin founded free libraries open to the general public, and many of the wealthy religious houses and monastic inst.i.tutions had collections of the rarest illuminated MSS., such as Livres d'Heures and early Liturgies, of which, alas! most were wantonly destroyed, or dispersed, during the mad period of the Revolution.

It must be admitted that humility was a virtue not much studied by the cardinals or their satellites, their books were sumptuously bound, with their arms ostentatiously emblazoned on the covers, and their book-plates were also of the most pompous description.

When ex-libris became fas.h.i.+onable theirs were the largest and the most elaborate, the insignia of the Church being added to their family arms, and nothing was omitted which could show how vastly superior these men were to their predecessors, the poor fishermen of Judea.

First among the Church dignitaries, who were also statesmen, comes the name of the powerful Cardinal Richelieu, who formed a valuable library, partly by purchase, but princ.i.p.ally by robbery or intimidation. To do him justice, however, he dedicated in his will his books to the use of the public, and his grand-nephew saw that his wishes were obeyed. The first idea of creating a free public library in France was due to J. A.

de Thou, who, dying in 1617, left all his valuable collections _ad usum public.u.m_: but his will was ignored, and his books were dispersed.

Richelieu followed his example, and later on the Cardinal Mazarin, his successor, realized the idea by leaving his magnificent library, with funds to maintain it, for the free use of the public.

Mazarin, that "Laquais parvenu au Cardinal," the councillor and the minister, if not the husband, of Anne of Austria, the man who, with all the cares of an unruly state on his shoulders, still found time to acc.u.mulate two enormous libraries. Of these the first was compulsorily sold in 1652, but the second remains, and now forms the nucleus of the Bibliotheque Mazarine in Paris. It was of this collection that Loret wrote:

"Mais, surtout, la bibliotheque Contenant maint uvre a la greque, Et des rangs de livres nombreux Persans, latins, chinois, hebreux, Turcs, anglois, allemans, cosaques, Hurons, iroquois, siriaques, Brefs tant de volumes divers D'auteurs tant en proze qu'en vers, Qu'on peut, sans pa.s.ser pour profane, Alleguer que la Vaticane N'a point tant de livres de prix, N'y tant de rares ma.n.u.scrits."

Mazarin confided his books only to the most expert binders; Le Gascon, Saulnier, and Pet.i.t were employed by him, whilst he kept a number of clever binders constantly at work in his library under his own supervision. His favourite style was red morocco, stamped on the sides with his arms, surmounted by the cardinal's hat, and in the angles a monogram, either C. J. M. (Cardinal Jules Mazarin), or simply J. M.

"Livres tant rares que vulgaires Dont chascun jusqu'aux plus coquins Revestu d'un beau marroquin, D'une ravissante maniere."

Thus bound, emblazoned, and identified, the books of Cardinal Mazarin certainly needed no ex-libris, nor does it appear that he used one.

Bishop Huet, who gave his books to the Jesuits, has already been mentioned as the cause of several fine ex-libris.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE FOR THE LEGACY OF GILLES MeNAGE.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE FOR THE DONATION OF BISHOP HUET.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF BISHOP QUIQUERAN DE BEAUJEU.]

The arms which Gilles Menage had stamped on his bookbindings (_d'argent, au sautoir d'azur charge d'un soleil du premier_) were also placed on the ex-libris prepared by the Jesuits, to be placed in the books left to them by Menage. The plate is less elaborate than that of Bishop Huet, but is equally interesting. Menage was born on August 15, 1613, and displayed an intense love of books from his earliest youth, and what was somewhat remarkable, he inserted the date on which he acquired each book on the t.i.tle page. Although a great scholar, he possessed little originality; his own most important work was his _Dictionnaire Etymologique_, whilst that which has best preserved his memory amongst general readers is the curious collection ent.i.tled, "_Menagiana_: ou les Bons Mots et Remarques Critiques, Historiques, Morales et d'Erudition, de M. Menage. Recueillies par ses Amis." This is indeed a mine of information; it contains much valuable ore in the shape of epigrams, parodies, and anecdotes, but great labour is required to separate the gold from the quartz. Here is the poem "Le Fameux La Galisse," which Goldsmith imitated, and here, too, is the famous saying of Menage, "La premiere chose qu'on doit faire," so often quoted on book-plates. Menage died July 23, 1692, which year is given on the Jesuits' book-plate.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BOOK-PLATE OF BISHOP CAUMARTIN.]

To a.s.sist in identifying ecclesiastical ex-libris, it must here be mentioned that they carry the head-dresses peculiar to the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, which are to be distinguished as follows:

_Cardinal._--A red hat having a wide, flat brim, with a cord on each side, from which hang five rows of red ta.s.sels.

_Archbishop._--A hat similar in shape to that of a cardinal, but green in colour, with a cord on each side, from which hang four rows of green ta.s.sels.

_Bishop._--The same hat as an archbishop, but with only three rows of green ta.s.sels.