Books with Royal Bookplates

Victoire de France

Victoire de France (Marie Louise Thérèse Victoire de France; 1733-1799) was a French princess, the fifth daughter of King Louis XV of France, a sister of Marie Adelaide de France de France and Sophie Philippine de France, and a great-aunt of Louis XVI, Louis XVIII and Charles X. She was referred to as Madame Quatrième ("Madame the Fourth"), signifying the fourth daughter of the King, and as "Madame Victoire". She was never married. After the French revolution, she moved with Maria Adelaide to Italy, died in Trieste in 1799.

Fléchier, Esprit (1632-1710).

Histoire du cardinal Ximenés. Par Messire Esprit Fléchier evêque de Nismes. — A Paris : chez Jean Anisson, 1693.

4° (187 Ñ… 250 mm). A green marocain binding with gold embossing. Victoire de France's super ex libris — the coat of arms is placed on the front and back covers (is established by: OHR, pl. 2514, â„–4).

Shelf mark: 33.58.7.4

The first edition of the History of Cardinal Jimenez by the French church author E. FleÅ¡ie (1632-1710). Cardinal Francisco Jimenez de Cisneros (1436-1517) was one of the most important Spanish Catholic kings figures in the early 16th century. He was an adviser of the Catholic Kings Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, a great inquisitor, a founder of the University of Alcala (modern University of Madrid), a connoisseur of several ancient and modern languages. In his last years, Jimenez served as the regent of Castile and Aragon, and therefore was the de facto ruler of Spain.

Choisy, François Timoléon de (1644-1724).

Histoire De L’Eglise. Par Monsieur l’Abbe De Choisy. — A Paris : chez Valleyre Chr. David Huart ..., 1740. — 11 vols.

4° (182 x 253 mm). A green marocain binding with gold embossing. Victoire de France's super ex libris (partially is struck out) — the coat of arms is placed on the front and back covers, (is established by: OHR, pl. 2514, â„–4).

Shelf mark: 16.15.4.2

Eleven volumes of the Church History by François Timoleon Choisy belonging to the National Library of Russia have an interesting common feature: all Victoire de France's super ex librises are damaged. For lack of documents showing how these books came to the Library, as well as of any handwritten notes in the text, it is impossible for anyone to establish who, when and under what circumstances committed this barbaric act. It seems most probable that the Bourbon lilies were destroyed during the Great French Revolution when the ancient symbols of royal power and aristocracy aroused huge anger and frustration among the representatives of the third estate.

The publication itself, however, has no less interesting history, because its author was an outstanding intellectual of the Enlightenment. The abbot François Timoleon de Choisy (1644-1724) was an author of many books on philosophy, history, philology and theology, as well as literary works. This member of the French Academy was an open transvestite and preferred wearing women dresses to men’s clothing. Finished his main work, de Choisy allegedly uttered the phrase that best describes his personality: "I have completed the History of the Church, thanks to God; right now I'll start to study it".