FLAUBERT (Gustave). Autograph manuscript entitled... Lot 80

FLAUBERT (Gustave). Autograph manuscript entitled "Histoire d'Espagne". [Circa 1845]. 14 pp. in-4 in a notebook of 4 bifeuillets. Gustave Flaubert, who visited Spain twice (the first in 1840), probably took these notes as part of his personal historiographical studies, probably around January 1845, when he wrote to his friend Emmanuel Vasse de Saint-Ouen, "je repasse mon histoire" ("I'm ironing my history"). Here, he condenses his reading of several passages from Eugène Rosseeuw Saint-Hilaire's Histoire d'Espagne, published in Paris by Levrault from 1837 to 1841, and republished by Furne from 1844 to 1879. It consists mainly of three chapters of the introduction (chapter II, "Language and primitive inhabitants of Spain, Celts and Iberians", chapter III, "Phoenician Spain. Greek Spain. Carthaginian Spain", Chapter IV, "Roman Spain"), Chapter III ("Ecclesiastical Constitution") belonging to Book I ("Gothic Spain"), and Chapter I ("Catholic Kings in Toledo") belonging to Book II. " ... Carthaginian Spain. In the 8th century, foundation of Ebusus in the Balearic Islands called Pythiuses. The islands of Majorca and Minorca were taken from the Greeks. The Phoenicians of Gades, harassed by the natives, called on Carthage for help; Carthage came, but lost Santi-Petri and began to declare war on Spain. HAMILCAR BARCA 237 B.C. HASDRUBAL conciliates peoples through his gentleness. Founder of Cartagena. ANNIBAL. Came to Spain at age 9, married a Spaniard and became a Spaniard himself. Florus says "Hispaniam seminarium belli, Annibalis erutriticem". Silver mine in Navarre called Annibal's Well, yielding 300 lb[res] of silver per day. Annibal laid siege to Sagonte. Rome [did] not help her, when she was defeated, she asked Carthage for an account... SPAIN, VICTED, BECOMES THE CENTER OF THE BARCA'S POWER (it was from this country that Annibal drew all his forces in the Italian war..." " ... Musa disembarked at Algesiras in 711 (April 30) - battle on July 25, 711 on the plain bordered by the Guadalete, 99 miles from Cadiz, where the town of Xérès de La Frontera now stands. Roderic is betrayed and defeated (see [Robert] Southey's poem on "Roderic the last of the Goths", notes, and Walter Scott's "Vision of Don Roderic")..." Gustave Flaubert would evoke in Salammbô (1863) the lofty figure of Hamilcar and his plan to conquer the Iberian peninsula.