René Richard - Parallèle du Cardinal de Richelieu et du Cardinal Mazarin, contenant les anecdotes de leurs vies - 1716

Parallel of Cardinal Richelieu and Cardinal Mazarin, containing anecdotes of their lives and their Ministry. Dedicated to His Royal Highness the Duke of Orléans, Regent of the Kingdom, by Monsieur l’Abbé Richard – in Paris, at Guillaume Cavelier, 1716 – (12) ff, 336 pages – full calfskin of the period – in-12 – 10 x 17 cm.

Condition: Upper cap missing, spine in good condition, hinges solid, spine ornamented with gilded fleurons and the title piece in garnet morocco (one small leather loss at the top of the spine, a few rare foxings, marbled edges. Apart from the noted defects, a copy in good condition of this rare original edition.

• Author: L'Abbé René Richard (1654–1727), scholar and ecclesiastic.

• Structure: A biographical and moral perspective juxtaposing administration, diplomatic successes, methods of governance, and the personality traits of Richelieu and Mazarin.

• Anecdotes: The text gathers numerous courtly tales, rumors, witticisms, and secret episodes characteristic of the historical literature of the late reign of Louis XIV and the Regency.

• Tone: A critical and nuanced view of the exercise of ministerial power, ambition, love of money, and the "raison d’État"