Philippe de Comines - Supplément aux mémoires de Philippe de Comines - 1713

Comines, Philippe de (Seigneur d’Argenton). Supplement to the memoirs of Philippe de Comines, Seigneur d’Argenton, containing the addendum to the history of King Louis XI, with several pieces, letters, memoirs, researches and critical and historical remarks on the same subject and various other curious matters.

Brusselle, François Foppens. 1713. Small octavo. X + 496 pages. Contemporary calf binding in full glacé (glossy) leather with blind tooling on the boards, spine with five raised bands richly ornamented with a title piece in red morocco. Ex-libris and handwritten inscriptions on the title page.

Original edition without the portrait of Louis XI. Work in good general condition aside from rubbing and epidermal wear, split joints, and losses at the caps. Interior in very good condition except for a few browned pages.

Philippe de Comines was undoubtedly one of the first statesmen and the best historian of his century. He delighted in exposing the most secret levers of the policy of his master in his Memoirs. He is the only medieval author whose reception has continued from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Even François Villon did not enjoy such fortune. There are no fewer than 120 editions between 1540 and 1643.
Philippe de Commynes began his diplomatic career in 1464. In the autumn of that year, he was brought to Lille where Philippe le Bon attached him, in the capacity of squire, to the person of his son, the Count of Charolais, future Charles the Bold, about ten years his senior; from squire, he later became chamberlain to him. In 1468, the meeting at Péronne between the Duke of Burgundy and Louis XI, which Commynes recounts at length in the Memoirs, marks a decisive turning point in the course of his life. Flattered by the attention the king accorded him, Commynes gives him secrets and valuable advice that help Louis out of the delicate situation in which he had placed himself. Less than four years later, Commynes clearly sides with the King of France, even becoming his counselor and close secretary. Louis XI appoints him seneschal of Poitou.

Original edition rather scarce, which follows the Memoirs of Philippe de Comines, in an era-binding with no volume numbering.”