205 - THE ROMANCES: AN INTIMATE GIFT FROM QUEEN HORTENSE IN 1813.

THE ROMANCES: AN INTIMATE GIFT FROM QUEEN HORTENSE IN 1813. Romances set to music by H[er] M[ajesty] Q[ueen] H[ortense] No place or date, circa 1812. Small Italian quarto format, original binding in full red long-grain morocco, the covers decorated with a gilt frieze of stylized palmettes and eagles at the corners as a frame, with a lyre motif in the spandrels, centered with the letter “H” beneath an imperial crown on the upper cover, the spine plain with the title “Romances” gilded lengthwise, the edges gilt. Olivier, Hermal, and Roton, plate 2658, stamp 3. This stamp, as well as the lyres, appears to have been reserved for the bindings of the *Romances*. Set of 26 pages, including 1 title page with the coat of arms of Queen Hortense supported by two female and male allegories, 1 color lithographic portrait of Queen Hortense after Isabey, 12 romances set to music accompanied by their 12 bister-toned aquatints in the troubadour style, based on drawings by Count Turpin de Crissé. In good overall condition, with slight wear on the corners of the binding and some scratches. Provenance A gift from Queen Hortense for the 1813 New Year’s gifts. History This is an original edition of this rare album, printed in a small run for close friends. The pieces celebrate patriotic fervor and poignantly depict separations. The first romance (“Le Beau Dunois”) was written by the Count of Laborde and reflects the emerging troubadour style. The others are by Queen Hortense. “I wrote them easily. ‘Partant pour la Syrie’ was composed at Malmaison while my mother was playing backgammon. It was a success and was sung during the War of 1809, just as ‘La Sentinelle’ had been during the Spanish War. Since then, during every campaign, people would come to beg me to write one, which I always did with reluctance, for I did not wish to be regarded as an author—a reputation too brilliant for my meager talent ” (Memoirs of Queen Hortense, quoted by Maurice Catinat in the magazine *Napoléon Ier*, No. 12.) In her Memoirs, Louise Cochelet (a reader and lady-in-waiting to Queen Hortense) recounts that the Romances set to music by H.R.H. were printed for the Queen, who wished to give them as New Year’s gifts to her close friends and family in 1813. Related Works - A copy given by Queen Hortense to Marquis Alexandre-François de Mun (1732–1816) as a New Year’s gift in 1813, sold at Millon, “Museo Imperial 1808” Collection, October 30, 2025, lot 93 (sold for €2,800). - Another copy is housed at the châteaux of Malmaison and Bois-Préau (inv. M.M.40.47.7022).