Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. 7407 La Jolla Boulevard www.raremaps.com (858) 551-8500 La Jolla, CA 92037 [email protected] [Siege of La Rochelle] Stock#: 39039 Map Maker: Callot Date: 1631 (1880 ca) Place: Paris Color: Uncolored Condition: VG+ Size: 52.5 x 52.5 inches Price: SOLD Description: Fine early 6-sheet view of th Siege of La Rochelle, engraved by Jacques Callot (1592-1635), perhaps the single most famous engraved view of the conflict. Callot's remarkable view illustrates a number of the most important elements of the siege,with the key below identifying over 50 points of interest during the battle. Of particular note, illustrating the detail and character of Callot's work, is the illustration of the dog to the left of note 29 at the bottom center of the image. The Siege of La Rochelle occurred during the war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627-28. The siege marked the height of the tensions between the Catholics and the Protestants in France, and ended with in victory for King Louis XIII and the Catholics. In April 1598, the Edict of Nantes signed by Henry IV of France, La Rochelle had become the stronghold of the French Huguenots, under its own governance. It was the center of Huguenot seapower and resistance against the French government. The assassination of Henry IV in 1610, and the ascendence of Louis XIII under the regency of Marie de' Medici, resulted a return to pro-Catholic politics and a weakening of the position of the Protestants. The Duke Henri de Rohan and his brother Soubise started to organize Protestant resistance from that time, ultimately causing the Huguenot rebellion. In 1621, Louis XIII Drawer Ref: Rolled Maps Stock#: 39039 Page 1 of 3 Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. 7407 La Jolla Boulevard www.raremaps.com (858) 551-8500 La Jolla, CA 92037 [email protected] [Siege of La Rochelle] besieged and captured Saint-Jean d'Angély, and a Blockade of La Rochelle was attempted in 1621-1622, ending with a stalemate and the Treaty of Montpellier. Again, Rohan and Soubise would take arms in 1625, ending with the capture of the Île de Ré in 1625 by Louis XIII. After these events, Louis XIII wished to subdue the Huguenots, and Louis' Chief Minister Cardinal Richelieu made the suppression of the Huguenot revolt a political imperative. The Anglo-French conflict followed the failure of the Anglo-French alliance of 1624, in which England had tried to find an ally in France against the power of the Habsburg controlled regions to the East. In 1626, France under Richelieu concluded a secret peace with Spain, and disputes arose around Henrietta Maria's household. Furthermore, France was building the power of its Navy, leading the English to be convinced that France must be opposed. In June 1626, Walter Montagu was sent to France to contact dissident noblemen, and from March 1627 attempted to organize a French rebellion. The plan was to send an English fleet to encourage rebellion, triggering a new Huguenot revolt by Duke Henri de Rohan and his brother Soubise. On the first expedition, England sent a fleet of 80 ships, under George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, to encourage a major rebellion in La Rochelle. In June 1627, Buckingham organized a landing on the nearby island of Île de Ré with 6,000 men in order to help the Huguenots, thus starting an Anglo-French War (1627-1629), with the objective of controlling the approaches to La Rochelle, and of encouraging the rebellion in the city. The city of La Rochelle initially refused to declare itself an ally of Buckingham, in a state of war against the crown of France, and denied Buckingham's fleet entrance to the harbor. By September 1627, an alliance was finally forged at the time of the first fights between La Rochelle and Royal troops. Although a Protestant stronghold, Île de Ré had not directly joined the rebellion against the Louis XIII. On Île de Ré, the English under Buckingham tried to take the fortified city of Saint-Martin in the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1627), but were repulsed after three months. Small French Royal boats managed to supply St Martin in spite of the English blockade. Buckingham ultimately ran out of money and support, and his army was weakened by diseases. After a last attack on Saint-Martin the English were defeated and left with their ships. In August 1627, the French Royal forces started to surround La Rochelle, led by Charles of Angoulême. They started to reinforce fortifications at Bongraine and at the Fort Louis. On September 10, 1627, the La Rochelle inhabitants began to fire on the Royal troops at Fort Louis, starting the third Huguenot rebellion. Once hostilities started, French engineers isolated the city with entrenchments 12 kilometres long, fortified by 11 forts and 18 redoubts. The surrounding fortifications were totally completed in April 1628, manned with an army of 30,000. Drawer Ref: Rolled Maps Stock#: 39039 Page 2 of 3 Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. 7407 La Jolla Boulevard www.raremaps.com (858) 551-8500 La Jolla, CA 92037 [email protected] [Siege of La Rochelle] The French also constructed a 1 mile long seawall, to block the seaward access to the city. The initial idea for blocking the channel leading to the harbor of La Rochelle in order to stop all supplies to the city came from the Italian engineer Pompeo Targone, but his structure was broken by the winter weather, before the idea was taken up by the Royal architect Clément Métezeau, in November 1627. The wall was built on top of a foundation made of sunken hulks, filled with rubble. French artillery was used against English ships that tried to supply the city. Meanwhile, in southern France, Henri de Rohan attempted to raise a rebellion in order to relieve La Rochelle, but in vain. Until February, some ships were able to go through the seawall under construction, but after March this became impossible. The city was completely blocked, with the only hope coming from a possible intervention of an English fleet. The English would make two more attempts to break the Siege, but failed each time and by October 1628, the City surrendered and the siege ended. Detailed Condition: Joined and laid on linen. Drawer Ref: Rolled Maps Stock#: 39039 Page 3 of 3.