Rare books, manuscripts and ephemera from five centuries

The Bourbons take Milan in 29 Sonnets 

 

[PHILIP V]. FILIPPO V. IN TRONO. Sonetti. In Milano: Nella Stampa di Giuseppe Clerici, MDCCII [1702].  SOLD

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SOLE EDITION. 4to, pp. 31, [1] blank; woodcut vignettes on title-page, and woodcut initials and headpieces on each subsequent page; dampstain to lower half of much of the work; in contemporary floral-patterned wrappers; some wear, but still an attractive copy.

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Very rare collection of sonnets printed in Milan to mark the accession to the Duchy of Milan (and the Kingdom of Spain) of Philip V, and his successes in the subsequent War of the Spanish Succession it prompted.

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The volume contains 29 sonnets in all, on subjects relating to the consolidation of Bourbon power in the early stages of the War of the Spanish Succession, ranging from Louis XIV’s decision not to attempt to unite the crowns of Spain and France, to Philip’s wedding to Maria Luisa of Savoy, the education in the Catholic faith of Protestant prisoners of war, the arrival of Philip in Spain in 1701, French troops in Milan, the Battle of Cremona, the Grand Alliance of England and the Dutch Republic, the siege of Mantua, and Philip’s return to Milan. In addition, some of Philip’s generals are also praised, with sonnets devoted to Cristóbal de Moscoso y Montemayor, the Venetian statesmen Federico Cornari and Carlo Ruzzini, and other supporters of Bourbon rule. The poet was not to know that Bourbon control over the Duchy was only to last until 1707, when it was retaken by Habsburg forces, this time Austrian rather than Spanish; Austrian possession of the Duchy was formalised in 1713 at the Treaty of Utrecht.

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The author(s?) of the sonnets remains unknown. The printer, Giuseppe Clerici, seems to have had a short career in Milan, with SBN recording twelve works between 1699 and 1704, including two other sonnets in 1702. 

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Not in Melzi; not in OCLC; SBN (IT\ICCU\MILE\049620) records two copies, both in Milan (Braidense and the Società Storica Lombarda). 

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[ref: 2660 ]