Details

Subjects:

Philip II, King of Spain, 1527-1598.
Süleyman I, Sultan of the Turks, 1494 or 1495-1566.
International relations -- History -- 16th century.
Ambassadors -- France -- 16th century.
International relations.
Ambassadors.
History.
France -- History -- Charles IX, 1560-1574.
France.
France -- Foreign relations -- Turkey.
Turkey.
France -- Foreign relations -- Spain.
Spain.

Form/Genre:

Reports.
Manuscripts, French.
Manuscripts, Renaissance.

Language:

In French.

Summary:

Original letter from Charles IX to Raymond de Rouer, sieur de Fourquevaux, his ambassador at the Spanish court of Phillip II. The French king claims to be pressured by his subjects in Provence and Languedoc to ransom a number of Frenchmen who had been captured by privateers in Algiers, Bone, and Tripoli. Charles IX reports that at first his ambassador to Constantinople was not able to meet with the traveling Suleiman I but was redirected to Belgrade, where he found himself in danger of being beheaded because the French had given assistance to the Knights of Malta and to the Spanish king. Despite the initial setback, the ambassador was able to gain favors with certain Pashas; Charles IX appears optimistic about the return of the captives. The report also contains intelligence on the Ottoman army, which is numbered at 300,000 men with a high quantity of artillery and other munitions. Charles IX claims that Suleiman plans to attack Agria and Transylvania by land, while his naval plans remain unknown. The letter is signed by Charles and countersigned by Florimond Robertet, his secretary of State. The letter is dated 20 August 1566, with the location indicated as Orcan. The text, written in a secretary script, appears on one half of the folded leaf; the other half of the leaf has the name of the addressee and a wax seal. Watermark of Charles IX depicts two intertwined columns topped with a crown and identifies the name of papermaker as Edmon Denise (Briquet, Colonne 4433, Mezières, 1564). A modern transcription of parts of the letter is included along with a detached piece of seal.

Penn Provenance:

Formerly held at the Château de Fourquevaux (Zacour-Hirsch).
Purchased in 1965.

Cited in:

Described in Zacour, Norman P. and Hirsch, Rudolf. Catalogue of Manuscripts in the Libraries of the University of Pennsylvania to 1800 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1965). Supplement A (2). Library Chronicle 36 (1970), p. 20-21 (Ms. Lea 413).

Contributor:

Fourquevaux, baron de (Raymond), 1508-1574, addressee.
Miscellaneous Manuscripts Collection (University of Pennsylvania)

OCLC:

232636720