213 - [1870 War]

[1870 War] [Manned Balloons] 1-Letter stamped “by manned balloon*” with a dispatch stamp dated December 4, 1870, addressed to Mme de Varansay at La Forgellerie via Mortagne (Orne). Arrival postmark in Mortagne on December 8 (on the reverse). * “(…) we have 12,000 men, 4 batteries, and field batteries—nearly 60 guns—which have inflicted heavy losses on the Prussians in the last two battles on November 29 and December 2 (…)”. Excellent condition. *Letter delivered starting on December 5 by the “Franklin” balloon, which took off at 1 a.m. and landed in Saint-Aignan-Grandlieu near Nantes after a flight of 403 km. 2- Letter stamped “by manned balloon**” with a dispatch stamp dated November 21, 1870, addressed to Mademoiselle Leveau Bellême (Orne). Postmark indicating arrival at destination on December 11 (a handwritten note on the reverse indicates December 19). 2pp in-12. A long letter describing the appalling conditions of the siege: “It has been two months since our poor Paris has been blockaded (…) it is impossible for us to foresee the end (…) fortunately, the number of volunteers in our battalion is strong enough that we do not have to draft married men (…) our greatest concern is food; we have 40 grams of meat per day, which would be insufficient if we didn’t have horse meat (…) we also eat donkey and mule. There are places where they sell nothing but cat, cat, and rat,” etc., etc. Excellent condition. ***Letter carried by the balloon “La Ville d’Orléans.” It took off from the Gare du Nord on November 24 and was caught in a storm and violent winds. The balloon was carried northward and finally landed (after a 15-hour journey) on the 25th on the Lifjell mountain plateau in Norway, 1,200 km from Paris. The mail bag had been jettisoned to weigh down the balloon; once recovered, it was forwarded by the French Consulate in Norway, then sent on to England before reaching France, which explains the long delay between dispatch and receipt. Enclosed: -Service order (October 28, 1870) on letterhead of the “Garde National de la Seine.” 1p in-12; fine copy. -A laissez-passer dated February 1871. 1 p., in-4; stamps. Fine copy. A second bilingual one (French/German, dated February 6, 1871). 2 pp., in-4; good copy. -A printed letter from the Subprefect addressed to “Mr. Mayor” dated December 30, 1870, in Vire, ordering “(…) under no circumstances to allow pigeons to be released by balloonists who have landed in your municipality.” In-12. A fine copy. -Passes (11th arrondissement town hall) and ration cards (meat and “voucher for a portion of national broth”) in the form of stickers. -3 letters with their envelopes from the same period. Good copies.