712 - Salvo, Carlo Marchese de. The Remarkable Story of the Rescue of Mrs. Spencer Smith from French Captivity in Venice in 1806 by the Marquis de Salvo, a Young Sicilian; and of Her Escape Through Tyrol, Styria, Bohemia, Poland, and Livonia to England. Translated from the English by Henriette Schubart. Leipzig and Altenburg, Brockhaus, 1816. XXIV, 226 pp. 16.5 x 10.5 cm. Contemporary half-leather binding (heavily rubbed).

Salvo, Carlo Marchese de. The Remarkable Story of the Rescue of Mrs. Spencer Smith from French Captivity in Venice in 1806 by the Marquis de Salvo, a Young Sicilian; and of Her Escape Through Tyrol, Styria, Bohemia, Poland, and Livonia to England. Translated from the English by Henriette Schubart. Leipzig and Altenburg, Brockhaus, 1816. XXIV, 226 pp. 16.5 x 10.5 cm. Contemporary half-leather binding (heavily rubbed). Constance Catherine Smith (1785–1829) was the wife of British diplomat John Spencer Smith and the sister-in-law of the famous Admiral Sir Sidney Smith—a declared arch-enemy of Napoleon. In 1806, she was arrested in Venice on Napoleon’s orders. Since Great Britain and France were at war, she was to be deported to Valenciennes, France, to be used as a political bargaining chip. The young Sicilian nobleman Carlo, Marchese di Salvo, made the daring decision to rescue the pregnant and ailing woman. Their escape is considered one of the most spectacular political, romantic, and adventurous dramas of the Napoleonic era. In disguise and with forged passports, they fled right through the heart of Europe, which was either under French control or threatened by France. The escape caused a great sensation throughout Europe and was even immortalized in literature by Lord Byron in his poems. — Tanned and partially stained. *