Add MS 8273

COLLECTION of relazioni, tracts, treaties, and papal instructions relating to Venice, France, the Empire, Switzerland, Spain, the Papacy, the Council of Trent, Parma and Constantinople; circa 1416-1564. Italian and Latin. Copies, 17th cent. Imperfect. The MS includes: - (a) relazione of France by Marino Giustinian, [1535] (ff. 2-59v): another copy in Add. 8262 (art. b, ff. 82-102v), published by Albèri, s. i, vol. i (Florence, 1839), pp. 145-196; - (b) relazione of Germany by Marino Cavalli, [1551] (ff. 60-99v), of which other copies in Add. 16519 (ff. 107-125v), 48153 (art. 5, ff. 87-99v), and published by Albèri, s. i, vol. ii (Florence, 1840), pp. 193-223; - (c) relazione of Switzerland, circa 1562-1564 (ff. 100-105v), of which another copy in Add. 8305, art. 1, ff. 2-5; - (d) treaty between the Emperor Charles V and King Francis I of France, 1544 (ff. 106-141v); - (e) heads of agreement between the King of France and the Swiss cantons, n.d. (ff. 142-161v); - (f) discourse and other papers relating to the Council of Trent, 1547, in Italian and Latin (ff. 162-177); - (g) instructions to Ludovico Beccadelli sent to report to Pope Paul III and Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (ff. 177v-187v); - (h) papal instructions to Cardinal Alessandro Farnese as nuncio a latere to the Emperor, circa 1543-1546 (ff. 186-189v); - (i) discourse relating to papal election, n.d. (ff. 190-193v); - (j) tract relating to the reform of the Church, in Latin (ff. 194-201v); - (k) paper relating to payments to religious houses in Constance, 1416, in Latin (ff. 202-211v); - (l) heads of agreement between the King of Spain and Ottavio Farnese, Duke of Parma, for the restitution of Novara (ff. 212-213); - (m) relazione of Constantinople by Domenico Trevisan, 1554 (ff. 214-330v), published by Albèri, s. iii, vol. i (Florence, 1840), pp. 111-192. Lacks instructions from Pope Eugenius IV to papal nuncios against the congregation of Basel (original ff. '100-170'), listed in the table of contents (ff. 1-1v), added later. Marked '12' in ink at centre of lower edge. Stamp of the Colonna library 'Libraria Colonna' in red on ff. ii, 1, 170, iv (verso); for the Colonna library stamp see Bragaglia, vol. iii, T 32: circa 1750. Previously believed to be from the library of Cardinal Giuseppe Renato Imperiali according to a note in Evans sale catalogue at lot 284. Owned by Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford, but lacking his armorial bookplate. '284' in pencil in upper left corner and 'Tomo XII' in pencil in lower right margin of f. ii. Purchased, together with Add. 8262-8272, 8274-8281, from R. H. Evans, 8 Dec. 1830, lot 284 (part).

Paper; ff. 330+iv, plus one unfoliated blank after f. 1, two after f. 59; missing 70 leaves corresponding to ff. '101-170' of the old foliation. Old foliation in ink '1-100', '171-401' (ff. 2-99, 100-330), including blanks; marked '117' in ink in upper left corner of first back flyleaf, on the verso. 269 x 205mm. Horizontal catchwords on each leaf. Several Italian hands.