SIMON. Correspondance de l’armée française en Egypte interceptée par l'escadre de Nelson ; publiée à Londres ; avec une introduction et des notes de la chancellerie anglaise, traduites en français ; suivies d'observations. [Bound with] (LAUS de BOISSY Louis de). Bonaparte au Caire, ou Mémoires sur l'expédition de ce général en Egypte, avec des détails curieux & instructifs sur cette intéressante partie du globe. Paris, Garnery et Paris, Prault, Rondonneau, an VII (1799).

Description

Two volumes in one volume 8vo, contemporary calf, 244pp., 1 folding map – frontispiece, IV, 240pp.

The first part contains a selection of official and private letters intercepted at various times by Turkish and British warships, published by the British government in 1798 to “disillusion Europe” about the true motive of the Egyptian expedition and to dismantle this “Oriental tale” by revealing the living conditions of the army.

The preface and foreword of the French edition see it only as enemy propaganda and falsifications. The work was written by General Matthieu Dumas, according to M. Quérard.

The second part contains the rare first edition of the publication of Bonaparte au Caire credited to Louis de Laus de Boissy. “Nothing concerning this important expedition has been overlooked; everything is supported by authentic documents. These [Memoirs] were written on site […] I have also included an appendix on the feasibility of passage from Egypt to India via the Isthmus of Suez.” (Publisher’s Note). Laus de Boissy “informs us that these memoirs were written in Egypt and entrusted by the author to a Frenchman accompanying Louis Bonaparte, who departed from Alexandria for France on November 5, 1799. According to some historians (notably Munier and Ch. Gaillardot), Laus de Boissy was actually a pseudonym for Captain Horace de Say, the chief engineer under Caffarelli and a member of the Institute. However, Say was killed at Saint-Jean d’Acre, and it was his manuscript that Laus de Boissy adapted and arranged for publication.

Regardless of its true authorship, the work reveals that the writer was responsible for acquiring and organizing scientific books for the members of the expedition. It also includes a list of the fleet that set sail from Toulon. After witnessing the capture of Malta, the author describes the assault on Alexandria in vivid detail. During his journey to Cairo, he was slightly wounded in the thigh at Chebreis and later took part in the Battle of the Pyramids. The book also recounts the naval defeat at Aboukir, based on French reports that reached Cairo.

As the title suggests, a significant portion of the work focuses on events in Cairo. The author provides a rich portrayal of the city, its population, customs, and traditions, as well as descriptions of its monuments and the public works commissioned by Bonaparte. He details various celebrations and the famous Cairo uprising. A chapter is dedicated to the establishment of the Institute, its activities, and its sessions.

It is worth noting that the publisher acknowledges supplementing the author’s text with various sources, including the travels of Norden, Niebuhr, Savary, and Volney, as well as newspapers such as Le Courrier d’Égypte.

The book concludes (pp. 182–210) with a short opera composed by Laus de Boissy in honor of the conqueror of Egypt: Zélis et Valcour, ou Bonaparte au Caire. Additional historical documents are also included.” (Meulenaere, pp. 30 and 133)