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On this day, as the United States celebrates the 250^th anniversary of its independence, it is tempting to invoke the great names and grand events: Independence, Revolution, Yorktown, Washington, Lafayette, Rochambeau… History with a capital H, resounding with drawn swords and rolling drums.

And yet, sometimes History hides inside a very small book.

This one fits comfortably in the palm of the hand. A modest duodecimo manuscript, unassuming in size yet remarkable in what it reveals. Its title is *La Santa Messa, e Preghiere*. It was written in 1767 by Jeanne-Thérèse d'Acosta, Countess of Rochambeau, wife of Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, Count of Rochambeau—the future commander of the French expeditionary force sent to America, whose cooperation with George Washington would prove decisive in securing victory at Yorktown.

The scene takes place fourteen years before that famous battle. Rochambeau, then a *maréchal de camp* in the French army, had not yet become, in American eyes, the French hero of Independence. Here he is simply a husband.

And this little book is a gift.

The Countess, who was practising her Italian, carefully translated a Catholic missal and prayer book in her own hand. She then presented it to her husband with a dedication of disarming tenderness:

"A te, diletto mio Sposo, le primizie del mio studio nell'Itala favella offro de buon cuore in omagio (…). Gradisci, te ne suplico, il buon cuore della tua affezzionatissima Sposa…"

"To you, my beloved husband, I wholeheartedly offer the first fruits of my study of the Italian language (...) Accept, I beseech you, the devoted heart of your most affectionate wife…"

What do we see here? Diligence, affection, modesty - and perhaps even a smile. The manuscript was bound at the time in calf, with a gilt monogram "R" stamped at the centre of each cover. Not an emblem of military glory, but the discreet mark of conjugal intimacy.

That is precisely what makes this object so moving. It does not show Rochambeau on the battlefield, nor devising the strategies that would help secure American independence. Instead, it presents him in the privacy of domestic life, receiving from his wife a token of love, study, and fidelity.

National anniversaries naturally commemorate events, dates, battles and heroes. But heroes have lives before they become statues. They receive gifts. They keep books. They read inscriptions written for their eyes alone.

This little sentimental relic of one of America's liberators reminds us that behind History with a capital H there is always a smaller, more intimate story. It is precisely this constellation of seemingly minor details that lends depth and perspective to the narrative of great events.

Does such a manuscript truly belong in a collection devoted to the history of the United States?

At first glance, nothing would seem to connect it with that subject. It says nothing about America, the War of Independence, or even Rochambeau himself. It is simply a devotional book translated into Italian by his wife and presented to him as a token of affection. Yet is it not meaningful to know that the hero of Yorktown crossed the Atlantic to wage war, leaving behind a wife who had loved him so tenderly?

If a prayer book presented to George Washington by Martha Washington were discovered today, or a grammar manuscript written by Joséphine for Napoleon, or a domestic notebook given by Clementine Churchill to her husband, many of us would undoubtedly regard such documents as essential sources for understanding these historical figures.

The question, then, is worth asking: should a historical collection be limited to documents that recount events directly, or should it also embrace those that illuminate the private lives of the men and women who shaped them?

Whether you are a bibliophile, an antiquarian bookseller, or the curator of a special collections library, we invite you to share your thoughts.

And if one of these fascinating, unclassifiable books happens to be hiding in your own collection, we would be delighted if you introduced it to us. We have an irresistible fondness for works whose significance unfolds through many different facets.

Dear readers, faithful friends of this blog, prepare yourselves to dive into the twists and turns of history, to discover an enigma that has confronted and captivated historians for over five hundred years. Yes, you read that correctly, five hundred years! Tonight, a documentary broadcast for the first time on Spanish television promises to unveil one of the most fascinating mysteries in the history of exploration: the true origin of Christopher Columbus. Just that!

Imagine for a moment: it is 1795, a time of great turbulence and major political changes. The Treaty of Basel has just been signed, ceding the island of Hispaniola from Spain to France. It is in this context that the governor of Hispaniola, Joaquín García, decides to organize the repatriation of Columbus's ashes to Cuba, to prevent them from falling into the hands of the French.

The letter from García, of which a precious contemporary copy is offered for sale in our bookstore, informs his correspondent of the transfer of Columbus's remains, hitherto kept in the cathedral of Santo Domingo, to the Bay of Ocoa, from where they were shipped to Cuba. There, they found a new temporary home in the cathedral of Havana, until their final repatriation to Spain more than a century later, in 1898.

But the story does not end there. Tonight, on this October 12th, the anniversary of the discovery of America (which also became the Spanish national holiday), we might finally discover where this illustrious navigator truly came from. How? Well, through the study of the DNA of these mysterious remains that our letter mentions the transfer of. Was he really Genoese, as the official version claims, or was he Galician, Castilian, Basque, Catalan, or Portuguese, as others suggest? Or does the genetic study of his origins sweep away all the theories that have circulated until today? The answer from science to this centuries-old question will finally be revealed, and I don't know about you, but I am bursting with impatience!

What about you, dear readers, what do you think of all this? What are your beliefs regarding the origin of Christopher Columbus? Do you have any theories, any intuitions? Do not hesitate to share your thoughts in the comments. In a few hours, one of the greatest enigmas in history will be publicly unveiled! Prepare the popcorn, get comfortable, and join me in front of the TV. History, my friends, is about to be written!

Postscript (October 15): For those who are still unaware, the conclusions presented by this documentary categorically dismiss all existing theories about the origin of Christopher Columbus, except for one: that of Francesc Albardaner, former director of the Center for Columbian Studies in Barcelona, and author of a work titled "The Catalanity of Columbus," according to whom the great explorer was a Sephardic Jew originally from the Spanish Levant. The lack of scientific evidence (the scientific team has not released any technical data to date) and the presentation of the results in the form of a heavily staged documentary has already sparked numerous criticisms, and several internationally renowned geneticists have expressed their skepticism. The controversy is served! What does this inspire in you?

The "Encyclopédie des Voyages" by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur, initially published in issues and by subscription starting in 1792, represents a significant publishing venture and a unique cultural and historical testimony about the peoples of the world at the end of the 18th century. This work, illustrated with colorfully detailed engravings, stands out for its iconographic richness and the diversity of subjects covered, ranging from costumes to daily life, including religious traditions and the social practices of various peoples.

Born in Montreal and having arrived in France around 1785, Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur quickly established himself as a notable figure in the publishing world of his time. His ambition was to offer his contemporaries an open window to the world, presenting them with as complete a vision as possible of the different cultures inhabiting it. The Encyclopedia of Travels, with its three hundred and one finely colored engraved plates and detailed descriptions, undoubtedly represents the pinnacle of this ambition.

The work, rare in its original complete version with its fifty installments and covers printed on ochre paper, is a treasure for bibliophiles and historians. It immerses us in a universe where travel and the discovery of the Other were experienced through stories and illustrations, at a time when means of transport and communication were limited. The plates, of exceptional quality, offer a precise glimpse into the costumes, as well as the rites and customs of peoples from around the world, drawn from nature.

The "Encyclopédie des Voyages" is more than just a collection of engravings and descriptions; it is a bridge between cultures, a testament to the curiosity and open-mindedness of the Age of Enlightenment. It highlights the importance of knowledge sharing and mutual discovery among peoples, values that, more than two centuries after its publication, remain more relevant than ever. In summary, this work is a gem of French publishing and cultural history, continuing to inspire and fascinate those interested in the diversity of the human world.

But what is this bundle of handwritten letters, filled with spelling mistakes and all adorned with wax seals and their colored silk ribbons? What treasure do we have here? Imagine, ladies and gentlemen, a collection of 43 handwritten letters, just like that! And not just any letters, as these are the correspondences addressed to her father by a figure of the high French nobility from the North of France, the Maréchale d'Hocquincourt herself!

Who exactly was this Maréchale d'Hocquincourt? Well, my friends, let me introduce Éléonore d'Estampes de Valençay, a woman with a destiny as fascinating as it is tumultuous. The daughter of Jacques d'Estampes, lord of Valençay and Happlaincourt, governor of Calais, she married in 1628 Charles de Monchy, Marquis d'Hocquincourt, Marshal of France, and governor general of Péronne, Montdidier, and Roye. Here is a characteristic marriage of the grand unions of that time, traditionally linking two great aristocratic families with converging interests.

These letters addressed to her father by Éléonore, before and after her marriage, invite us to experience her world for nearly twenty years. We discover a young girl full of innocence and childlike obedience, residing in Boran-sur-Oise. Then, over the letters, we see Éléonore grow and tackle more serious subjects, especially when she resides in Plainville or Paris. She talks about political rumors she hears, troop movements she observes, visits she receives, conflicts with her husband who abuses her dowry (what a horror!)... Ah, the joys of marriage!

But Éléonore doesn't just spread political rumors to her father or talk about her marital difficulties, no! She also conveys to the patriarch news about her family, especially the women who composed it. Her mother Louise Blondel de Joigny, her "life mother" (an appellation that probably refers to her nurse), her sister Charlotte, nun then abbess, her aunt, or family friends, etc. And she also reports information that could be useful to him in managing his affairs. One feels the importance of the role she plays in her family. And, married or not, it is invariably under her maiden name ("E. d'Estampes") that she signs her letters to her father, who annotates them as he receives them, indicating after her marriage her married name: "My daughter d'Hocquincourt." Just to make sure not to mess things up.

We can say it: Éléonore's life was not a long, quiet river. She was the mother of eight children, among whom... seven boys! Several of whom followed in the footsteps of their father and grandfather in the military career. And imagine that one day her husband decided (to please other women, they say) to betray the court of the King of France and join the Spanish in 1655... Nothing less! He ended up being killed in 1658 during the defense of Dunkirk for the Spanish, who held the city at that time. Widowed, Éléonore also had the misfortune of seeing two of her sons die in military operations, in 1665 and 1675. But she did not lose courage and launched a legal action in 1667 against the houses of Nesle and Montcavrel, to claim a sum owed to her. The Parliament almost immediately ruled in her favor, but the procedure seems to have been relaunched after her death in 1679... A true saga!

But back to our letters. They not only constitute a precious testimony to family life and the social role of women in the high French nobility but are also beautiful to read and... to look at! The wax seals, the colored silk ribbons, the handling of the French language, the formality with which they are imbued, and the charm of the formulas that Éléonore uses to express her feelings... everything is there to immerse us in the atmosphere of the time. And the spelling of these missives, practically nonexistent, does not reflect any negligence on the part of Léonore but rather her lack of academic training. This was still the case in her time for many women, regardless of their rank and condition. It only makes more moving these lines written to her father in the greatest ignorance of "aurtaugrafic" rules (which does not fail to attract her father's wrath).

In conclusion, dear readers, this collection of letters from the Maréchale d'Hocquincourt is a true historical treasure. They allow us to delve into the intimacy of a family of French warlords in the 17th century and unveil some realities of the lives of women within the sword nobility of that time. If you enjoy diving headfirst into documents that transport you several centuries back, at the risk of having a hard time coming back, Éléonore d'Estampes de Valençay is waiting for you... Feel free to write to her, we will forward the message !

As a tribute to the master satirist and virtuoso of language Francisco de Quevedo Villegas, born on this day in 1580, we present to you a copy of an utmost rare Sevilla printing of his famous “Sueños y Discursos”, a collection of misanthropic fantasies of the afterworld first published in Barcelona in 1627. This slightly expurgated version was edited by a friend of the author, with his agreement, and published with an alternative title in order to escape censorship.

“Estimado lector, que Dios lo proteja de los libros malos, la policía y las mujeres regañonas, con la cara lívida y el cabello rubio.”

After the storming of the Bastille, we could not resist the pleasure of presenting this suite of fine lithographs depicting the barricades of the Revolution of July 1830! This heroic vision is that of the painter Hyppolite Bellangé (1800-1866), a specialist in battle scenes famous for his paintings of the Napoleonic epic !

A little over seven centuries ago today, the great Petrarch was born !
As a tribute to the founder of Humanism, we present to you this rare and beautiful Venice edition (Il Petrarcha, Venegia, Bernardino Bindoni Milanese, 1543), illustrated with 6 engraved figures and a portrait of the master, and dressed in its contemporary vellum !

"[L]ibri medullitus delectant, colloquuntur, consulunt et viva quadam nobis atque arguta familiaritate iunguntur, neque solum se se lectoribus quisque suis insinuat, sed et aliorum nomen ingerit et alter alterius desiderium facit. » (Epistolae de Rebus Familiaribus, III, 18)

On the eve of Bastille Day, we invite you to discover a detailed chronicle of the events and debates that took place during the first months of the French Revolution, from the creation of the National Assembly until September 1789: “Mémoires historiques, critiques et politiques de la Révolution de France avec toutes les opérations de l'Assemblée Nationale” (Paris, chez l'Auteur, Bleuet, et Potier de Lille, 1790).
Its author, Nicolas de Basseville (1753-1793) was an editor at the Mercure National and then a diplomat in Italy; he died in Rome as a martyr of the young Republic, lynched by a mob raised by the papal clergy against the symbols of the French Revolution !

A beautiful copy in nice contemporary binding, illustrated with an engraving of the storming of the Bastille!