Bidspirit auction | LOUIS XVI: (1754-1793) An extremely

LOUIS XVI: (1754-1793) An extremely rare copy of the Edict of Tolerance signed by King Louis XVI - LOUIS XVI: (1754-1793) King of France 1774-92, the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. Executed by guillotine on the Place de la Revolution at the age of 38. An historically important pair of Ds.S., Louis , as King, altogether eighteen pages (vellum), folio, Versailles, November 1787, in French. The first printed document (one of just thirteen send to the parliaments of France) is the Edict of Versailles (also known as the Edict of Tolerance) and is an official act headed ´Edit concernant ceux qui ne font pas profession de la Religion Catholique (Translation: ´Edict concerning those who do not profess the Catholic religion´ ), commencing with a preamble in which King Louis XVI revisits the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, noting that ´U ne assez longue expérience a démontré que ces épreuves rigoureuses étaient insuffisantes pour les convertir´ (Translation: ´ A fairly long experience has shown that these rigorous trials were insufficient to convert them´ ) and concluding thus ´ nous ne devons donc plus souffrir que nos lois les punissent inutilement du malheur de leur naissance, en les privant des droits que la nature ne cesse de réclamer en leur faveur´ (Translation: ´ We must therefore no longer suffer our laws to punish them unnecessarily for the misfortune of their birth, by depriving them of the rights which nature never ceases to claim in their favour´ ). There follows no fewer than thirty-seven articles, the first allowing ´ ceux de nos sujets qui professent une autre religion que la religion catholique, apostolique et romaine [de] jouir de tous les biens et droits qui peuvent ou pourront leur appartenir à titre de propriété ou à titre successif, et d’y exercer leurs commerces, arts, métiers et professions sans que, sous prétexte de leur religion, ils puissent y être troublés ni inquiétés´ (Translation: ´ those of our subjects who profess a religion other than the Catholic, Apostolic and Roman religion [to] enjoy all the property and rights that may or may come to them by title of ownership or succession, and to exercise their trades, arts, crafts and professions without being disturbed or troubled on account of their religion´ ) and the second, main article, recognises by law the validity of marriages between Protestants, stating ´ Pourront en conséquences, ceux de nos sujets ou étrangers domiciliés dans notre royaume qui ne seraient pas de la religion catholique, y contracter des mariages dans la forme qui sera ci-après prescrite ; voulons que lesdits mariages puissent avoir dans l’ordre civil, à l’égard de ceux qui les auront contractés dans ladite forme, et de leurs enfants, les mêmes effets que ceux qui seront contractés et célébrés dans la forme ordinaire par nos sujets catholiques´ (Translation: ´Consequently, those of our subjects or foreigners domiciled in our kingdom who are not of the Catholic religion may contract marriages therein in the form prescribed below; we wish that such marriages may have, in civil law , with regard to those who have contracted them in the said form, and to their children, the same effects as those contracted and celebrated in the ordinary form by our Catholic subjects´ ). The remaining articles specify the terms and conditions of these marriages (which until then had been performed in secret, and had no civil status) and impose restrictions on the range of professions that could be practised by non-Catholics (prohibition of the judiciary, notary, etc.). Signed by the King at the conclusion and bearing two countersignatures including that of Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil (1730-1787) Baron de Breteuil, French aristocrat, diplomat and statesman who served as Secretary of State to the Maison du Roi 1784-88, and briefly as Chief Minister of the French Monarch in July 1789. The second printed document comprisies three pages and is entitled Tarif annexé à l'édit qui concerne ceux qui ne professent pas la religion catholique ( ´Tariff appended to the edict concerning those who do not profess the Catholic religion´ ) and lists the financial costs of the various legal procedures required by the new status of Protestants: marriage declarations, birth certificates, death certificates, etc. Signed by the King at the conclusion and again also bearing the countersignature of Baron de Breteuil. The two documents are bound together with the original green and red cords. An important pair of historical documents signed at a pivotal moment in the history of religious freedom in France. Some light, uniform age toning and light staining to the first page, as to be expected, and the interior pages generally much cleaner. About VG The Edict of Versailles, signed by King Louis XVI on 7 th November 1787, was an official act that gave non-Catholics in France the access to civil rights formerly denied to them,