Discours du gouvernement et de la raison vraye d'estat. Traduit nouvellement d'italien par Adrien de Vallières, Ecuyer Seigneur des Aulnes.
Douay, Imprimerie de Baltazar Bellère, 1611.
Small 8vo, contemporary overlapping vellum, red edges, traces of ties. 8 unnumbered leaves (including title with fine woodcut printer‘s mark), 377 pp., 2 unnumbered table and approbation leaves. A few ornaments and fine capital letters. Complete.
First French edition given by Adrien de Vallières.
A fundamental text of political literature on the “reason of state” which greatly influenced Chemnitz, Naudé, and Bacon. The work first appeared in Italian in 1606.
Underlining and a few marginalia by a contemporary hand.
Tear on p. 81 without loss and a few pages toned, but generally a good unsophisticated copy.
Rare.
Ref. Bibliographie douaisienne, 264 / Graesse, V, p. 105 (Italian edition) / Not in Brunet