The discovery and the conquest of the Canary Islands by Jean de Béthencourt in 1402.
Bergeron, Pierre. History of the first discovery and Conquestof the Canaries. Made in the year 1402 by Sir Jean de Bethencourt, Chamberlain to King Charles VI. Written at the same time by F. Pierre Bontier a Franciscan friar, & Jean le Verrier Priest, servants to the said lord of Bethencourt and Brought to light by Mr. Galien de Bethencourt, Advisor to the King in his Court of Parliament of the King plus a Treatise on navigation and discoveries and modern conquest, & especially of the French.
Paris, by Jean de Heuqueuville, 1630.
In-8 of (10) ff., portrait of Bethencourt full page, 208 pp., (6) ff. Preserved in its original vellum, smooth back with handwritten title, mottled red edges. Original binding.
178 x 113 mm.
Beautiful copy of this story of the conquest of the Canaries, very rare.
Unique edition of this text recounting the conquest of the Canaries by Jean de Béthencourt in 1402.
«Sought-after work» (Brunet, I, 832).
Béthencourt, from Normandy, originally from Grainville in the land of Caux, embarked in 1402 for La Rochelle, then Spain before sailing towards the Canaries with two ships.
The book details, through short chapters, each stage of the trip and the conquest of the archipelago by the intrepid adventurer.
«The expedition led by Jean de Béthencourt and Gadifer de La Salle, in 1402, towards the Canaries has been the subject of many comments since the publication by Pierre Bergeron of the manuscript attributed to Jean V de Béthencourt, in 1630, called manuscript B, or of «Montruffet». The discovery by Pierre Margry of the manuscript G (or «Egerton») and its publication in 1896 profoundly renewed the vision of this expedition. Léopold Delisle quickly demonstrated the precedence of the Gadifer manuscript, the text of which was resumed and transformed by the author of manuscript B to highlight the role of Jean de Béthencourt and demote that of Gadifer. The two manuscripts therefore offer two perspectives on an expedition starting from La Rochelle in May 1402 towards the Canaries to conquer them. Quickly, however, the lack of resources led Béthencourt to seek help from the King of Castile, leaving Gadifer alone in the Canaries for more than eighteen months. During this time, the latter explores the archipelago but faces the revolt of part of his companions. After Béthencourt’s return to the Canaries in April 1404, the two men completed the conquest of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, but Gadifer, feeling betrayed by Béthencourt, who had obtained the title of lord of the islands from the King of Castile, decided to abandon the expedition and return permanently to France. Shortly after, Béthencourt returns to Normandy to recruit settlers, peasants, and artisans, whom he establishes in the Canaries in May 1405. In December 1405, he returns to Normandy, leaving his nephew Maciot behind».
A very finely engraved portrait of the explorer faces the first chapter. He is labeled at the bottom «the true portrait of Sir Jhean de Béthencourt King of the Canaries. Bathazar Moncornet-Made». The Norman adventurer is portrayed facing forward, in armor, with a cloak on his shoulders and a hat bristling with points. At the top left is his coat of arms and to his right a window opens to a countryside landscape.
A perfectly preserved copy in its period vellum of this remarkable, yet little-known work among many bibliophiles due to its extreme rarity.
