{"product_id":"jean-legers-history-of-the-waldensians-1669-first-edition","title":"Jean Leger's History of the Waldensians 1669 First Edition","description":"\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003eHistoire Generale des Eglises Evangeliques de Vallees de Piemont; ou Vaudoises. [...]. Par Jean Leger. Leiden: Jean le Carpentier, 1669, folio.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e-------------------\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eFIRST EDITION\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e of the most important and vivid history of the Waldensians, written by a direct eyewitness to their greatest catastrophe, plausibly the copy of the prominent philosopher Henricus Bornius. A Savoyard pastor of the Piedmontese valleys, Jean Léger witnessed firsthand the horrors of the 1655 massacres, today known as the “Piedmontese Easter”, in which the forces of the Duke of Savoy unleashed extraordinary brutality upon the Waldensian communities. Léger himself suffered confiscation of property and the destruction of his home before fleeing into exile at Leiden, where he was later appointed pastor of the Walloon Church. This work is both testimony and indictment: a monumental contemporary account of persecution, written by someone who escaped it.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eDivided into two principal books, the first offers a detailed exposition of Waldensian origins, doctrine, discipline, and ecclesiastical organisation, of exceptional importance for understanding this pre-Reformation evangelical movement. The second recounts, with harrowing immediacy, the long history of persecutions inflicted upon them, culminating in the massacres of 1655, the Treaty of Pinerolo, and renewed violence in 1663-4. The narrative extends beyond confessional history, touching upon the broader social and political fabric of Piedmont, the Wars of Religion, and even the natural and linguistic environment of the Alpine valleys, incorporating passages in the Piedmontese dialect.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eBrunet justly describes the work as “curious and sought-after,” while Lozzi emphasises its rarity and the extraordinary nature of its illustrative programme. Indeed, many copies were suppressed or destroyed by the Roman Curia, no doubt due to the very graphic and accusatory nature of its contents.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe book is richly illustrated in intaglio, including a striking allegorical engraved title leaf depicting Waldensians trampling the papal tiara and crosier and a fine portrait of Léger aged 53. The text is further illustrated with 34 engraved figures: four depict Alpine flora and fauna (including marmot, ibex, and native plant life), while the remainder present shocking visual documentation of the atrocities committed in 1655, \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003ci\u003eincluding scenes of execution, torture, and mass violence\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e. Particularly notable are three powerful etchings by the Dutch artist Cornelis Elandts, a follower of Rembrandt, illustrating martyrdoms and inquisitorial tortures with remarkable force. An abridged life of Léger concludes the second part.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eA work of profound historical importance and emotional intensity, this is the foundational printed account of the Waldensians, at once a document of Protestant identity, a chronicle of persecution, and a rare survival in light of deliberate suppression. Copies remain quite scarce on the market, this copy in a contemporary vellum binding, probably Dutch, though not without its faults.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e-------------------\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eProvenance\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e1. \"H. Bornius\" (plausibly Henricus Bornius, 1617-1675), contemporary inscription to front blank. Henricus Bornius was a prominent 17th-century Dutch professor of philosophy and ethics at the University of Leiden. He was notable for guiding the early education of King William III of England, and his principal published work is titled '\u003ci\u003eOratio inauguralis de vera philosophandi libertate\u003c\/i\u003e'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e2. From the collection of the General Theological Seminary Library, New York, with their bookplate to the front pastedown and associated blindstamps.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e-------------------\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eSize: 250 x 375 mm (approx.)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e[[2], *2, portrait, a-g2, A-Z2, Aa-Zz2, Aaa-Hhh2; a-d2, A-Z2, Aa-Zz2, Aaa-Zzz2, Aaaa-Zzzz4, Aaaaa-Fffff2]\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTwo parts bound into one. Contemporary full vellum, front board detached and a little warped, rear attached, backstrip detached with some losses, but largely extant. The binding is attached at the rear joint reasonably securely. Textually collates as complete, but without the map, as often. Front two blanks detached but present, one of which includes the H Bornius inscription, a little ragged at edges. Thereafter all leaves attached in the binding. Blindstamps and ink stamps from the General Theological Seminary Library throughout in several locations, including the title leaves, as well as their bookplate to the front pastedown and library pouch to the rear pastedown. Text block toned throughout, but fully legible. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoodPaz Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56744942043460,"sku":null,"price":600.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0783\/1725\/7028\/files\/s-l1600_0246fce7-caa6-4090-b143-31b263037cce.jpg?v=1778586247","url":"https:\/\/woodpaz.com\/products\/jean-legers-history-of-the-waldensians-1669-first-edition","provider":"WoodPaz Books Ltd","version":"1.0","type":"link"}