Estimate: £300 - £500
Rare Books, Manuscripts, Maps & Photographs | 792
Auction: 19 June 2024 from 10:00 BST
MSS document in various parts, c.1786, comprising 14 pp. written in a continuous but unknown hand, with an additional ‘title leaf’, 23 x 17.5cm, loosely bound with ribbon
The ‘Affaire du Collier’ – The Diamond Necklace Scandal – gripped France in the 1780s. Queen Marie-Antoinette disliked the Cardinal de Rohan, on account of his hypocrisy, lack of piety and habit of spreading false rumours about her conduct. In an attempt to better himself with the Queen, the Cardinal decided to facilitate the purchase of an impressive diamond necklace for her, made by the jewellers Boehmer and Bassenge. A con artist known as the ‘Comtesse de la Motte’ successfully convinced the Cardinal that the Queen would appreciate the necklace and the King would pay for it – all the Cardinal needed were letters of authorisation from the Queen. La Motte then hired a prostitute to pretend to be the Queen, meet the Cardinal (suspiciously, at night in a forest) and authorise him to make the purchase. The jewellers then handed the necklace to La Motte, who promptly sold the diamonds.
The Queen was understandably shocked when the jewellers contacted her to ask when payment would be forthcoming. The Cardinal de Rohan and the con woman were arrested – de Rohan was acquitted, La Motte escaped prison and fled to England and the whole affair contributed to Marie-Antoinette’s declining reputation.
This manuscript, clearly written by somebody with close access to the inner circles at court, examines the Cardinal de Rohan’s role in the whole affair. It is divided into six sections: Lettres patentes d’attribution adressées à la Grande Chambre du Parlement de Paris le 5 Septembre 1785; Plainte de M. le Procureur general contre M. le Cardinal de Rohan; Mémoire instructif de la manière dont Boehmer et Bassenge ont traité avec M. le Cardinal le vente de leur grand collier…; Proposition faitte à l’assemblée Générale du clergé…; Lettre de l’assemblée Générale du clergé…; Réponse du Roy addressee à l’assemblée du clergé le 19 septembre 1785. Several of these sections are available elsewhere, in print or manuscript, however this manuscript copy deviates from the printed copies and appears to be earlier.