Lazare Carnot - Lettre autographe signée au Directoire diplomatie Naples - 1796

Autograph letter signed, dated 22 Fructidor Year IV (September 8, 1796), written when Carnot was at the height of his power in the Directory. An influential member of the executive since October 1795, he plays a central role in the military and diplomatic organization of revolutionary France.

Written on laid paper.

In this letter, he answers a compatriot who requested a diplomatic post in Naples. Carnot explains that the Directory has not yet considered a nomination, the peace with the King of the Two Sicilies having not yet been concluded. He expresses personal esteem and his support, while firmly recalling the principle of collegiality of the Directory:

“ … you have perfectly grasped the correctness of this observation, that the Directory is one, that its members can have no opinion except in the Directory, and that it has decided that none of them would dare to express it as an individual. ”

The letter ends by directing the applicant to the Minister of Foreign Relations, the only one competent to instruct his request, and assuring that the Directory “will always strive to follow the path of justice.”

This document constitutes a valuable testimony to French foreign policy toward Naples and perfectly illustrates the institutional functioning of the Directory in 1796.

- Dimensions: 18.1 x 23.4 cm
- Condition: See photos for more details.
- Number of pages: 1 page

- Lazare Carnot (1753–1823), general, engineer and statesman, was a member of the Committee of Public Safety and of the Directory. Nicknamed “the organizer of victory,” he played a major role in mobilizing the Republican armies and in organizing the military of Revolutionary France.

Careful packing in a rigid and watertight carton.