' It is a manuscript, with a note added to the following effect:
'These military ordinances of the excellent and invincible Duke Charles
of Burgundy were taken at Morat on the 14th of June 1476, being found in
the pavilion of that excellent and potent prince.' When Charles was
killed at Nancy in the following year his favourite _Cyropaedia_ was found
by the Swiss in his baggage. This volume was bought in 1833 by the Queen
of the Belgians at a book-sale in Paris, and has now been restored to its
original home at Brussels.
After the death of Charles the Bold his library at Dijon was given by the
French King to George de la Tremouille, the governor of the province. It
passed to the family of Guy de Rocheford, and in the course of time many
of the best works have found their way into the national collection. Mary
of Burgundy retained the other libraries at Brussels. After her marriage
with Maximilian her family treasures were for the most part dispersed in
France, Germany, and Sweden, the needy prince being unable to resist the
temptation of pilfering and pawning the books; but the generosity of
Margaret of Austria, a great collector herself of fine copies and first
editions, in some measure repaired the loss; and Mary of Austria, who
became Regent in 1530, continued the work of restoration.
The magnificence of the Burgundian Court and the commercial prosperity of
the Low Countries led to a continuous demand for fine books among the
other productions of luxury.
Pages:
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100