Rebecca Boone - War, Domination, and the Monarchy of France (2007)

War, Domination, and the
Monarchy of France
Brill’s Studies in Intellectual
History
General Editor
A.J. Vanderjagt, University of Groningen
Editorial Board
C.S. Celenza, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
M. Colish, Oberlin College
J.I. Israel, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton
J.D. North, University of Groningen
W. Otten, Utrecht University
VOLUME 156
War, Domination, and the
Monarchy of France
Claude de Seyssel and the Language of
Politics in the Renaissance
by
Rebecca Ard Boone
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2007
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Boone, Rebecca Ard.
War, domination, and the monarchy of France: Claude de Seyssel and the language
of politics in the Renaissance/by Rebecca Ard Boone.
p. cm. — (Brill’s studies in intellectual history; v. 156)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 978-90-04-16214-3 (hardback: alk. paper) 1. Seyssel, Claude de, 1450?–1520.
2. Political science—History—16th century. 3. Politics and war—History—16th
century. 4. Seyssel, Claude de, 1450?–1520. Monarchie de France. 5. France—
Politics and government—1328–1589. 6. Monarchy—France—History—16th
century. I. Title. II. Series.
JC139.S45B66 2007
320.44409’024—dc22
2007028225
On the cover: Raphael (1483–1520), Vision of a Knight (c. 1504). Oil on poplar,
17.1 u 17.3 cm. © Copyright The National Gallery (NG 213).
Brill has done its best to establish rights to use of the materials printed herein.
Should any other party feel that its rights have been infringed we would be glad
to take up contact with them.
ISBN 978 90 04 16214 3
Copyright 2007 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing,
IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated,
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printed in the netherlands
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements ..................................................................... vii
List of Maps and Illustrations .................................................... ix
Introduction ................................................................................ 1
Chapter One In medias res: The Life of Claude de Seyssel .... 27
Chapter Two The Scholar-Diplomat ...................................... 53
Chapter Three The Translator of Histories ........................... 85
Chapter Four Seyssel and Italy: A Scholar Looks at War ...... 107
Chapter Five The Scholar and the State ................................ 129
Chapter Six Seyssel, the Church, and the Ideal Prelate ........ 165
Conclusion .................................................................................. 175
Bibliography ................................................................................ 179
Index ........................................................................................... 189
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Among all the individuals who made this book possible, I am above
all grateful to Michael Monheit, the director of my Master’s thesis at
the University of South Alabama. It was he who in the fall of 1992
tossed the English edition of The Monarchy of France onto my desk and
asked me what I thought of it. The book then became the subject of a
dissertation at Rutgers University under the direction of Donald Kelley,
whose faith in the Seyssel project never faltered. This book would not
have existed without his support. Other members of my dissertation
committee, Anthony Grafton and Jennifer Jones gave me valuable com-
ments and advice on turning the dissertation into a book.
Several individuals aided my research abroad. Françoise Waquet
instructed me in the system of the former Bibliothèque Nationale in
Paris. Monsieur le comte Jean de Seyssel graciously allowed me access
to Claude de Seyssel’s original works. Louis Terreaux, president of the
Académie de Savoie, provided me with valuable knowledge concerning
the nature of the Savoyard nobility in Seyssel’s time. Letizia Arcangeli
at the University of Milan provided me with important information
on the French occupation of Milan.
I would also like to express my gratitude to those who read the
manuscript and greatly improved it in the process. Kenneth Gouwens
helped to situate the book more Àrmly in the context of Italian his-
toriography. Orest Ranum and Barb Stephenson provided greatly
needed help from the standpoint of French history. Jacob Soll and
Letizia Arcangeli supplied useful criticism of the introduction. Marian
Matrician provided as...