![Paul de Rapin de Thoyras, John and Paul Knapton, 1743 cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Paul_de_Rapin_de_Thoyras%2C_John_and_Paul_Knapton%2C_1743_cropped.jpg)
Paul de Rapin (25 March 1661
– 25 April 1725),
sieur
Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...
of Thoyras (and therefore styled de Rapin de Thoyras), was a
Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...
writing under English patronage. His ''History of England'', written and first published in French in 1724–27, was an influential exposition of the
Whig view of history on both sides of the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
.
Life
The son of Jacques de Rapin, an ''avocat'' at
Castres
Castres (; ''Castras'' in the Languedocian dialect, Languedocian dialect of Occitan language, Occitan) is the sole Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Tarn (department), Tarn Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administ ...
(Tarn); his mother Jeanne was the sister of
Paul Pellisson
Paul Pellisson (30 October 1624 – 7 February 1693) was a French author.
Pellisson was born in Béziers, of a distinguished Calvinist family. He studied law at Toulouse, and practised at the bar of Castres. Going to Paris with letters of intr ...
, official historian to
Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
. He was educated at the
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
Academy of Saumur
The Academy of Saumur (french: Académie de Saumur) was a Huguenot university at Saumur in western France. It existed from 1593, when it was founded by Philippe de Mornay, until shortly after 1685, when Louis XIV decided on the revocation of the E ...
; in 1679 he became an
advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...
, but he never practised law. Soon afterwards he joined the army.
[ The revocation of the ]Edict of Nantes
The Edict of Nantes () was signed in April 1598 by King Henry IV and granted the Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was in essence completely Catholic. In the edict, Henry aimed pr ...
in 1685, and the death of his father led him to move to England with his brother. Inclined to a military career, but unable to find work, he went on to the Dutch Republic
The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...
where he enlisted in a company of French army cadets at Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...
, commanded by his cousin, Daniel de Rapin.[ Rapin met the 15-years-old ]Jean de Bodt
Jean de Bodt (1670 – 3 January 1745) was a Baroque architect of the 18th century.
Biography
Bodt was born in Paris to French Huguenot parents, but his father came from Mecklenburg. He studied architecture, but was forced to flee from France a ...
and 7-years old Jean de Collas also Huguenots
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...
. They accompanied William III to England in 1688 (Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution; gd, Rèabhlaid Ghlòrmhor; cy, Chwyldro Gogoneddus , also known as the ''Glorieuze Overtocht'' or ''Glorious Crossing'' in the Netherlands, is the sequence of events leading to the deposition of King James II and ...
); Collas became a page of the queen Mary II of England
Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England, List of Scottish monarchs, Scotland, and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III of England, William III & II, from 1689 unt ...
.
De Rapin and de Both joined in Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
under the command of the 1st Earl of Athlone. During the Williamite war in Ireland
The Williamite War in Ireland (1688–1691; ga, Cogadh an Dá Rí, "war of the two kings"), was a conflict between Jacobite supporters of deposed monarch James II and Williamite supporters of his successor, William III. It is also called th ...
de Rapin took part in the Siege of Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,998 at the 2011 Census. It is County Antrim's oldest t ...
, the Battle of the Boyne
The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and ...
, and was wounded at the Siege of Limerick (1690)
Limerick, a city in western Ireland, was besieged twice in the Williamite War in Ireland in 1689-1691. On the first occasion, in August to September 1690, its Jacobite defenders retreated to the city after their defeat at the Battle of the Bo ...
.[ Soon afterwards he was promoted to captain; but in 1693 he was asked to become tutor to the Henry, Viscount Woodstock. Rapin accompanied his father ]William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland
Hans William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland, (20 July 164923 November 1709) was a Dutch and English nobleman who became in an early stage the favourite of William, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder in the Netherlands, and future King of England. H ...
, a diplomat, at the Peace of Ryswick
The Peace of Ryswick, or Rijswijk, was a series of treaties signed in the Dutch city of Rijswijk between 20 September and 30 October 1697. They ended the 1688 to 1697 Nine Years' War between France and the Grand Alliance, which included England, ...
(1697), perhaps also to Paris in the year after; in a very costly entourage. Bentinck was sent as ambassador to Paris for six months. While there, he opened negotiations with Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
for a partition of the Spanish monarchy, and as William's representative, signed the two partition treaties (Treaty of The Hague (1698)
The 1698 Treaty of The Hague, also known as the 1698 Treaty of Den Haag or First Partition Treaty was one of two attempts by France, Great Britain, and the Dutch Republic to achieve a diplomatic solution to the issues that led to the 1701–1714 ...
).[ Because of this Treaty all the diplomats settled in the Hague. In April 1699 Paul de Rapin married the widow Marie-Anne Testart (1676-1749) in a tiny village called Sloterdijk outside Amsterdam.
In 1701, Bentinck resigned all his offices in the royal household. A parliamentary enquiry found him guilty of ]high treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
for his role in the secret negotiations over the Treaty of The Hague (1698)
The 1698 Treaty of The Hague, also known as the 1698 Treaty of Den Haag or First Partition Treaty was one of two attempts by France, Great Britain, and the Dutch Republic to achieve a diplomatic solution to the issues that led to the 1701–1714 ...
. The House of Commons' dubious conviction was overturned by the House of Lords. However, he lost all his Irish estates after a critical report by a parliamentary committee. Travelling with his 19-year-old pupil between 1701 to 1703 to Hanover, Vienna and Toscane, both parties sent letters to Bentinck. Numerous letters shed light on the preparation of the voyage, the problematic relationship between the teenager and his teacher. Sophia of Hanover admired the guy. After 1704 - when Henry married - de Rapin started secretly a new project, writing a new, impartial history of England.
In 1705, he visited or lived in the Prussian
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
town Wesel
Wesel () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the Wesel district.
Geography
Wesel is situated at the confluence of the Lippe River and the Rhine.
Division of the city
Suburbs of Wesel include Lackhausen, Obrighove ...
, as one of his children was baptized there. Wesel had a considerable Huguenot community, almost a thousand in 1697. The French architect and engineer Jean de Bodt
Jean de Bodt (1670 – 3 January 1745) was a Baroque architect of the 18th century.
Biography
Bodt was born in Paris to French Huguenot parents, but his father came from Mecklenburg. He studied architecture, but was forced to flee from France a ...
was reshaping Wesel citadel
The Wesel citadel is the largest intact fortification system of the Rhineland and was built 1688–1722 in Wesel according to plans by Johan de Corbin, in the form of a pentagonal star, with each point of the star being a bastion. The citadel was ...
in the style of Vauban. With the financial participation of the Dutch, the largest fortress in Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia (german: Brandenburg-Preußen; ) is the historiographic denomination for the early modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenz ...
at the time was built over the next 40 years - as a barricade against the expansionist ambitions of Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
. Rapin settled there perhaps with the protection of Frederick I of Prussia
Frederick I (german: Friedrich I.; 11 July 1657 – 25 February 1713), of the Hohenzollern dynasty, was (as Frederick III) Elector of Brandenburg (1688–1713) and Duke of Prussia in personal union ( Brandenburg-Prussia). The latter function h ...
and Sophia of Hanover, the English heir presumptive
An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question.
...
. He may have disagreed with the Second Stadtholderless period
The Second Stadtholderless Period or Era ( nl, Tweede Stadhouderloze Tijdperk) is the designation in Dutch historiography of the period between the death of stadtholder William III on March 19, 1702, and the appointment of William IV as stadthold ...
too. In 1706 his wife received a considerable amount of money and jewelry; Rapin was involved as executor of the will of his sister-in-law, the wealthy Henriette Testart.
Rapin de Thoyras and his wife probably had eleven children, four were baptized in the Hague and six in Wesel; five died young.
He was the author of a ''Dissertation sur les Whigs et les Torys'' (1717), which was immediately translated into German, Dutch, Danish, and English.
''Histoire d'Angleterre''
It was at Wesel that he began his great work: ''Histoire d'Angleterre'' (''History of England''), an impartial account written for foreigners rather than for Englishmen. Rapin's ‘History’ begins with the landing of Julius Cæsar and ends with the accession of William and Mary. It was continued in French by David Durand (d. 1763), a Huguenot refugee. He added to Rapin's ‘History’ vols. xi. and xii. treating the reign of William III, published at the Hague in 1734–5.
* Volume I (1724): an account of Britain from the time of the Ancient British down to the Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
;
* Volume II: from William the Conqueror
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...
to Henry III;
* Volume III: from Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
to Henry V Henry V may refer to:
People
* Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026)
* Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125)
* Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161)
* Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227)
* Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...
;
* Volume IV: from Henry VI to Henry VII;
* Volume V: Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
;
* Volume VI: from Edward VI
Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...
to Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen".
El ...
;
* Volume VII (1725): James I James I may refer to:
People
*James I of Aragon (1208–1276)
*James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327)
*James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu
*James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347)
*James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
and the beginning of Charles I Charles I may refer to:
Kings and emperors
* Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings
* Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily
* Charles I of ...
;
* Volume VIII: Charles I Charles I may refer to:
Kings and emperors
* Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings
* Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily
* Charles I of ...
;
* Volume IX (1727): Charles II;
* Volume X: James II and William III and Mary II
Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III & II, from 1689 until her death in 1694.
Mary was the eldest daughter of James, Duke of York, and his first wife ...
.
''L'Histoire d'Angleterre'' was published monthly with illustrations and allegorical end pieces designed and engraved by François Morellon la Cave, and with a dedicatory epistle to King George I. The written style is lucid and effective. He stopped writing after dealing with the execution of Charles I of England
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of ...
in 1649.
All volumes of his work were translated to English in a total of 14 volumes from 1727 by the Reverend Nicolas Tindal. Tindal began this great task while a chaplain to the Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
, as attested in his foreword to an early volume. He added large numbers of informative notes throughout the volumes, which were illustrated with engravings, maps and genealogical tables of great quality. Illustrations were commissioned from Jacobus Houbraken
Jacobus Houbraken (25 December 1698 – 14 November 1780) was a Dutch engraver and the son of the artist and biographer Arnold Houbraken (1660–1719), whom he assisted in producing a published record of the lives of artists from the Dutch Go ...
. Many of the borders being designed by Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough (14 May 1727 (baptised) – 2 August 1788) was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he is considered one of the most important British artists of ...
and George Vertue
George Vertue (1684 – 24 July 1756) was an English engraver and antiquary, whose notebooks on British art of the first half of the 18th century are a valuable source for the period.
Life
Vertue was born in 1684 in St Martin-in-the-Fields, ...
. Tindal also added a "Continuation" to the History, covering the years from the accession of James VI and I
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
to that of George I of Great Britain
George I (George Louis; ; 28 May 1660 – 11 June 1727) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1 August 1714 and ruler of the Electorate of Hanover within the Holy Roman Empire from 23 January 1698 until his death in 1727. He was the first ...
.
Although written in French this work was produced for the endorsement of the British monarchy
The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...
, and at the time of its publication, for the House of Hanover
The House of Hanover (german: Haus Hannover), whose members are known as Hanoverians, is a European royal house of German origin that ruled Hanover, Great Britain, and Ireland at various times during the 17th to 20th centuries. The house orig ...
. For this reason the epistle Dedicatory, printed beneath a very elegant engraving of the Royal Arms, is of interest. The following is a translation of it:
To His Britannic Majesty, GEORGE I:
Sire,
''The liberty which I take in offering this History of England to YOUR MAJESTY, is based uniquely on the nature of this Work, in which I have set myself the task of instructing Foreigners in the origin and the progressions of the English Monarchy. As no-one takes more interest than Your Majesty in the glory of England, I have hoped that He would look with a favourable eye upon the feeble efforts which I have made to execute this design. The simple and faithful recital of the actions of the Kings, Your Predecessors, backed by the courage, the zeal, and the faithfulness of their English Subjects, is a kind of Panegyrique which can only be agreeable to Your Majesty. But He doubtless would not approve my temerity, if I were to undertake to add here that of Your Majesty, however abundant the material for it might be. That is a task which should be reserved for more eloquent pens than mine. I am content, SIRE, to have furnished for my Readers a ready means by which to compare the Reign of Your Majesty with the preceding Reigns, and the opportunity to observe, how attentive Your Majesty is to follow in the tracks of the Kings of England which were most distinguished by their virtues, and by their sincere love for their People – and with what care He distances himself from the false paths in which some have unfortunately gone astray. One will see clearly in this History, that the constant union of the Sovereign with his Parliament, is the most solid foundation for the glory of the Prince and the welfare of the Subjects; and from the little that one may have learnt of what is happening in England since Your Majesty took the Throne, one cannot but be convinced, that that indeed is the invariable principle upon which Your Majesty governs his conduct. I should account myself extremely fortunate, SIRE, if my zeal for Your Majesty should obtain for me a gracious acceptance of my very humble homage, and if Your Majesty were to deign to approve my sincere protestation, that I am, with a very profound respect, SIRE, the very humble and very obedient servant of Your Majesty,
THOYRAS RAPIN.''
The original version was almost the only English history available in France in the first half of the 18th century.
It was in his description of the reign of King Stephen of England
Stephen (1092 or 1096 – 25 October 1154), often referred to as Stephen of Blois, was King of England from 22 December 1135 to his death in 1154. He was Count of Boulogne ''jure uxoris'' from 1125 until 1147 and Duke of Normandy from 1135 unti ...
that de Rapin made perhaps his most enduring contribution to English history: he was the first historian to describe the reign as an "anarchy": "In the fatal anarchy, the barons acting as sovereigns grievously oppressed the people and were so presumptuous as to coin their own money."[Matthew, D: King Stephen, Hambledon and London, London 2002.]
Though de Rapin was of a strong constitution, the seventeen years he spent on the work ruined his health.[ One of his grandchildren was Theophile Cazenove.
]
Notes
References
Sources
* Napoleon Bonaparte, "Paul de Rapin-Thoyras," ''Napoleon’s Notes on English History made on the Eve of the French Revolution, illustrated from Contemporary Historians and referenced from the findings of Later Research by Henry Foljambe Hall''. New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., 1905, xx–xxv.
*
External links
*
Portraits of Paul de Rapin
at the National Portrait Gallery, London.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rapin, Paul De
1661 births
1725 deaths
People from Castres
18th-century French historians
French soldiers
Williamite military personnel of the Williamite War in Ireland
Huguenots
Whig history