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Magnificently contemporary coloured copy of De Gheyn's famous military manual. From the library of the last margrave of Bergen op Zoom, the grand son of Leopold Philippe, Duke of Arenberg

GHEYN, Jacob II de.
Waffenhandlung von den Rören. Musquetten. und Spiessen. Gestalt nach der ordnung dess Hochgebornen Fursten und Herrn herrn Moritzen Printzen zu Oranien, Graffen zu Nassaw und Guvernatorn und Capitein General uber Gelderlandt, Hollandt, Zeelandt, Utrecht, Overijssel etc.

With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike.

With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike.

With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike.

With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike.

With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike.



The Hague, [1607-] 1608. 3 parts in one volume. Folio. 18th-century marbled calf, spine ribbed and gilt with initials 'BP' in top compartment, spine with red and green title labels lettered in gold, gilt armorial centrepieces with crowned two coat of arms on sides (see below), marbled endpapers, blue marbled edges. With engraved title with the coat of arms, engraved title and imprint on three separate pieces of paper mounted, and 117 full page engraved plates of ca. 26 x 19 cm: 42 numbered plates in the first part (the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), 43 plates in the second part (nrs. 3-24, 28, 30, 32-34 and 36-43 numbered by hand, and the first plate signed in ms. 'Jacob de Gheijn in,'), the third part with 32 numbered plates (the first plate with printed signature), all magnificently coloured and lavishly heightened with silver and gold by a strictly contemporary hand, showing exercises with the firelock, the musket, and the pike. [10], [8], [11] ll.

Magnificent copy of one of the rare 1608 editions ('1608' added by hand on the engraved title) with the German title and text in English, French, German and Dutch of Jacques de Gheyn's famous pictorial army manual for use of officers to teach the young recruits how to handle their weapons: the firelock ('harquebus', 'roer'), the musket and the pike ('spies').
The first editions, published in the Netherlands, in Dutch and in English in 1607, and in French, German, Danish, etc. in 1608, all contained the 117 large engraved plates after the designs by Jacques de Gheyn II. The book was originally composed by Count Johan II of Nassau-Siegen (1561-1623) - the brother of Willem Lodewijk of Nassau, stadholder of Friesland (1560-1620) and nephew of Prince Maurice, the stadholder of the Dutch Republic - who commissioned De Geyn in about 1596 to publish it. Production, however, was delayed for several years, probably because the authorities were unwilling for such a military useful work to be issued until the armistice was in sight (the Twelve-Year's Truce, 1609-1921).
The manual gives an excellent picture of the victorious army of the Dutch Republic, so successfully reformed by Prince Maurice, (re)introducing exercise and discipline. It also immortalizes Prince Maurice (Maurits) as a military thinker and as commander of the most disciplined army of his age.
De Gheyn made his designs in 1596-99 of which 60 are still extant in the Rijksprentenkabinet in Amsterdam. As the sitter for his drawings he used Pierre du Moulin, a captain of Maurice's army. In 1606 De Gheyn was granted a 12-year privilege and in the following years he published editions in Dutch, French, English, German and Danish. Many copies have the engraved date '1607' on the title, between the title and the imprint, changed to '1608'. In our copy the title is in the first undated state. The same title-border was used for all the early editions and the text was engraved on three separate slips of paper to be pasted onto the blank spaces: for the coat of arms (at the top), for the engraved title (centre), and the imprint and privilege (bottom). Present here is the coat of arms of Prince Henry (1593-1612), the elder son of James VI, created Prince of Wales in 1610. In the Dutch issues the coat of arms of Prince Maurice is at the top in stead. In our copy the imprint reads: 'Gedruckt ins Graven hagen in Hollandt, met privileg. der Kay. Mayt: des Könings in Franckreich und der Ed: M: Herrn Staten general der vereinigten Niederlanden.' (not mentioned by The New Hollstein).
The book became an immediate success and is of considerable interest in military history. The great folio editions were followed in 1609 and 1619, by smaller quarto editions with woodcut copies of the original engravings.
Translated into many languages and often imitated, The exercise of arms laid the foundation for the handling of weapons by the infantry, and it was put into practice in the armies all through Europe. It stayed in use during the whole of the seventeenth century, and subsequent authors on the subject invariably based their work on Jacques de Gheyn's well illustrated manual for the instruction of recruits in the rapid and skilful handling of the ´Calivres´ (an obsolete name for the harquebus, or firelock), Muskets and Pikes. Apart from its military importance the book also is of great artistic value, the engravings being masterpieces in itself, while also the costume gives a true illustration of the soldier's wear at the time, providing motives for several kinds of decorative art: the factories in Delft for instance  produces many series of tiles based upon De Gheyn's engravings.
Full coloured copies - as the present copy - were issued for princes and other important persons and were probably coloured by De Gheyn himself who was certainly responsible for the high standard of this hand-colouring.

Our copy was owned and bound  in the 18th century by Charles Philippe Theodore Count Palatine de Sultzbach (1724-1799), Duke of Bavaria, Jülich, Kleve and Berg, Prince of Mörs, Count of Veldentz, Lord of Ravenstein and last Margrave of Bergen op Zoom (1733-1794), with his coat of arms on both sides. He was the grand-son of Leopold Phillipe, Duke of Arenberg (1691-1754) and Maria Francesca Pignatelli Countess of Egmond (1696-1766). Their daughter, Maria Henriette had married Johann Christian Sulzbach. His great-grandmother, Maria Enriette del Caretto de Savonay Grana von Arenberg, the wife of Phillip Charles François de Ligne, the third Duke of Arenberg (1663-1691), acted as regent for Charles Philippe Theodore after the death of her grand daughter Maria Henriette (de la Tour d'Auvergne) and was known as 'the Dowager of Aremberg'.

Some soiling, especially the lower right corners. Very fine magnificently coloured copy of a work of major importance in military history.
The New Hollstein (The De Geyn Family) II, nrs. 340-457 with descriptions and illustr. of all plates; Jacques de Gheyn II als tekenaar (1985), p. 12, nrs. 15-20 (pp. 45-7); cf. Muller, Historieplaten 1117 (& Suppl.); J.B. Kist's commentary to the facsimile of the Dutch edition (1971); Cockle 79 (other ed.); Jähns pp. 1005-7 (other edd.); Lipperheide 2057-60 (other eds.).

Related Subjects: 17th Century  Colour Platebooks  Costumes  Militaria  Netherlands 

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