Other 17th-century conflicts
Printed and manuscript maps, prints and views of 22 seventeenth-century wars
La Rochelle, 1627
PLAN VERITABLE ET TRES / EXACT DV SIEGE DE LA ROCHELLE / faict ce quinziesme de Mars 1628, / par Melchior Tauernier Graueur / & Imprimeur de sa Majesté / pour les Tailles douces, / demeurant à l’Isle / du Palais à...
published 1628Etching and engraving; printed on paper; mounted on paper (Mount Type A); gilt edges left, bottom and right | 34.2 x 42.8 cm (image and sheet) | RCIN 722026.a
A high oblique view/map of La Rochelle, besieged by the French Catholic army, commanded by Armand Jean du Plessis, Cardinal-Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585-4 December 1642) and defended by Benjamin de Rohan, duc de Soubise (1580-1642), from September 1627 to the capitulation of the city on 28 October 1628. Huguenot Rebellions or Rohan Wars (1627-9). Oriented with north to top.
This print shows the situation of the siege as a 15 March 1628. The reconstructed barrier across the seaward approach to La Rochelle is now firmly in place (see RCIN 722023.a) and, in the foreground, is a vignette of Estré (Aytré 46°08ʹ09ʺN 01°06ʹ52ʺW), the headquarters of Louis XIII.
The author explains, in the accompanying text (RCIN 722026.b), that several prints of the siege have been made in order to represent the constantly changing circumstances of the siege, and that his sources include plans and reports, as much by the engineers, as by those of noble birth and brave captains who were on the spot with his majesty (Louis XIII) and who had seen and supervised most of the fieldworks. He stresses the accuracy of the work.
Melchior Tavernier (1594-1665) (publisher)
Watermark: Bunch of grapes, a fleur-de-lys above with cartouche, the letters T B within
Condition: at least twelve fold lines; some brown staining and spotting to print and mount; worn, small hole bottom left. Verso: heavy surface dirt, especially along fold lines. One fold to mount which coincides with the central fold of the print; printed from a scratched plate, especially bottom left; pressure marks from the mounts of items which were kept above and below this map/print in a different collection are present on the recto and verso
34.2 x 42.8 cm (image and sheet)
cropped (platemark)
40.4 x 54.8 cm (mount)
Printed title:
PLAN VERITABLE ET TRES / EXACT DV SIEGE DE LA ROCHELLE / faict ce quinziesme de Mars 1628, / par Melchior Tauernier Graueur / & Imprimeur de sa Majesté / pour les Tailles douces, / demeurant à l’Isle / du Palais à / l’Espi d’or. [no title on print; title on accompanying letterpress text]
Annotations:
George III heading: Rochelle March 1628.
Other annotations: (Recto) none. (Verso) none, possible cropped along top edge.
George III catalogue entry:
Rochelle Plan du Siege de la Rochelle fait ce 15 de Mars 1628: par M. Tavernier, avec une Description.
Subject(s)
La Rochelle, Poitou-Charentes, France (46°10ʹ00ʺN 01°09ʹ00ʺW)
Bibliographic reference(s)
M. McDonald, The Print Collection of Cassiano dal Pozzo. Part II, Architecture, Topography and Military Maps, 3 vols, London 2019, cat. no. 2865
Page revisions
14 March 2024
Current version
