Add MS 8342

POLITICAL TRACTS relating to the Papal Court; circa 1554-1610. Italian. Copies. The MS. includes: - (a) discourse (art. 1, ff. 1-96v) relating to the Court of Rome by Cardinal Giovanni Francesco Commendone, dedicated to Girolamo Savorgnan (or Savorgnano) in anticipation of his return to Rome, circa 1554; - (b) political instructions (art. 2, ff. 97-124v) from Lelio Marretti to a Cardinal de' Medici, possibly identifiable with Francesco de' Medici (1594-1614), brother of Cosimo II: the treatise was probably composed after the death of Ferdinand I (7 Feb. 1609), and may date from circa 1609-1610. For Lelio Marretti's works and bibliography see Add. 8807. Table of contents (f. ii), added later. Old signature '42' ink in lower left corner of front pastedown. Other old signatures 'Tom. CX' in pencil in upper right corner of f. i, and '554' in ink in fifth spine compartment: identifiable with Mattei MS. 554 (vol. 110 of 'Materie diverse') in Guilford's catalogue Add. 8220, f. 24v. Owned by Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford, but lacking his armorial bookplate. '107' in pencil in upper left corner of front pastedown. Purchased, together with Add. 8333, 8334, 8335, 8336, 8337, 8345, 8348, 8349, 8350, 8351, 8352, 8360, and 8812, from R. H. Evans, 8 Dec. 1830, lot 107 (part).

Contents as follows:

1. ff. 1-96v. 'Discorso del Cardinal Commendono sopra la Corte di Roma / All'Illustre Signore Girolamo Savorgnano'; [1554]. Italian. Copy. Inc. 'La domanda che voi mi fate', expl. 'ch'io non so ne posso'. Text divided into two parts (ff. 1, 49). Other copies of the same text in Add. 8401 (art. 1, ff. 2-111v), 8474 (art. a, ff. 1-82v), 10716, 18655, 29444 (ff. 43-89), 48795 (ff. 28-78), and Harley 3562 (ff. 1-9). Partly printed in Spicilegium Romanum, VI (1841), pp. li-lix; BL copy 832.k.12; published as G. F. Commendone, Discorso sopra la corte di Roma e altri scritti, ed. by D. Rota (Bergamo, 1983), and G. F. Commendone, Discorso sopra la Corte di Roma, ed. by C. Mozzarelli (Rome, 1996). For Commendone see DBI, 27 (1982), pp. 606-613.

2. ff. 97-124v. 'Instruttione data al Signor Cardinale de Medici come si ha da governare alla corte di Roma', political instructions from Lelio Marretti to Cardinal [Francesco?] de' Medici; circa 1609-1610. Italian. Copy. Inc. 'Gran cosa è in vero, e singolarmente eminente', expl. 'che metta conto rivedergli'. Other copies in Add. 48134 (Yelverton MS. 149), art. 14, ff. 379-434v, Royal 14 A.XX, art. 8, ff. 643-702, Vat. MS. Ottobon. lat. 268, pp. 142 sqq., Rome, Biblioteca Corsiniana, MS. 38.A.22, Siena, Biblioteca degli Intronati, MS. K.III.11 (with autograph annotations).

Paper; ff. 124+ii, plus four unfoliated blanks after f. 96. Old foliation in ink '1-124' (followed here). 295 x 212mm. Horizontal catchwords on each leaf. Two Italian hands: - (a) ff. 1-96v; - (b) ff. 97-124v. 17th-cent. Italian binding of full vellum.