French fortifications
Overview
36 plans of late 17th century fortifications, primarily in the region between France and Belgium.
Dates
- 1667 - 1686
Conditions Governing Access
No access restrictions
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
Extent
1 box (1 case + 1 oversize folder with drawings of 39 fortifications ) : Ornamentation: Ink and watercolor; occasional pencil construction-lines. Some with key, some with names on plan, some without names of features. Some elaborate titles. Plans always include fortifications, watercourses, roads; often mountains, woods, marsh; occasionally buildings in perspective; once streets (unnamed). Scale (often in thoises). Pagination: Each plan on separate sheet, folded once: unfolded sheet ca. 53cm high, 77-91 cm wide. Formerly bound; formed part of numbered series of which Verdun was no. 66. Material: Paper watermarked with columbier and chaplet, countermarked Cusson and BQC. Scribe: Unsigned. Paper from Auvergne
Language of Materials
French
Scope and Contents
39 plans of late 17th century fortifications, primarily on the France Belgium border: Ath A[?](Belgium), Amiens (Somme), Antwerp (Belgium), port of Agde (Hérault), Ardres (Pas-de-Calais), Abbeville (Somme), Avesnes-sur-Helpe (Nord).. Bapaume (Pas-de-Calais), Brest (Finistère), Béthune (Pas-de-Calais), Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais, Bouchain (Nord), Charleville & Mézières (Ardennes), Charleroi (Belgium), Sierck (Moselle), Condé sur l'Escaut (Nord); [environs], Port Louis and environs (Morbihan) [present Lorient], Châlon-sur-Saône (Saône-et-Loire), Doullens (Somme) Dendermonde [or Termonde] (Belgium) La Fère (Aisne), Guise (Aisne), Gravelines (Nord), Hesdin (Pas-de-Calais), Ham (Somme) , Landrecies (Nord), Nieuport (Belgium), Namur (Belgium), Oudenaarde (Belgium), Peronne (Somme), Pinerolo (Piedmont, Italy) "Pignerole"-identification not certain], Le Quesnoy (Nord), Stenay (Meuse), Sedan (Ardennes), J St. Quentin (Aisne), St. Omer (Pas-de-Calais), Toul (Meurthe-et-Moselle), Toulon (Var), Verdun (Meuse).
Fourteen of these places were fortified by Vauban (Vauban, Sebastian Le Prestre de (1633-1707)); many of the others were fortified under Louis XIV, and superficial research does not rule out Vauban; but he had a hand in 160 forts.
Dating:
- 1666-
- Charleroi founded
- After 1667
- When Ath became an octagon
- 1675?
- (Agde) Canal du Midi not shown [but would it show?]
- 1679?
- Stenay redone by Vauban
- Before 1686
- (Charleville) Mont Olympe not yet razed
- 1692?
- Vauban fortified Namur [but are these V's fortifications?]
- 1696?
- Pinerolo not yet demolished
- 1705
- Sedan smaller than EB plan
- 1720
- Lorient not yet official name
- 1730
- (Chalon) Canal du Centre not shown
Physical Location
MS J3
Other Finding Aids
For a detailed description of many of the maps, see ksrl.sc.frenchfortifications.pdf.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Jacques Rosenthal, 1960?
- Title
- Guide to the Collection of late 17th-century French Fortification Plans
- Subtitle
- French fortifications
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by alh, 1964; revised by ksc, 2006. Finding aid encoded by skt, 2006.
- Date
- 2006
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in English.
- Finding aid permalink
- http://hdl.handle.net/10407/4812286717
- Preferred citation
-
Collection of late 17th-century French Fortification Plans, Department of Special Collections, MS J3, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository