202 - Jean-François Paul de Gondi, CARDINAL de RETZ - Memoirs Describing the Remarkable Events That Took Place in France During the Early Years of the Reign of Louis XIV

Jean-François Paul de Gondi, CARDINAL de RETZ - Memoirs Describing the Remarkable Events That Took Place in France During the Early Years of the Reign of Louis XIV Published by J. Frédéric Bernard in Amsterdam, 1731 - A very fine copy of this new 4-volume edition, complete in all parts, of these famous memoirs. Beautiful period full calf bindings, with richly decorated spines and title labels and volume numbers in red morocco; minor flaws in the bindings, nothing serious. The interior is fresh and, most importantly, complete, featuring a beautiful engraved portrait as a frontispiece. “Retz’s Memoirs constitute a testimony that is undoubtedly biased, yet often lucid, about his era, and above all, the expression of an individual deeply attuned to the image he formed of himself and projected to others, a man who believed in greatness and who combined calculation and passion to the highest degree. Published during the Regency for an audience curious about the events of the Fronde, they undoubtedly also contributed, through their highly personal nature, to steering the novelistic genre toward the analysis and celebration of the self found in the works of Marivaux and Prévost.” (Henri Coulet) In-12, (17ff.) 390 pp.; 399 pp.; 452 pp.; 331 pp. (26 pp.)