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Finely Executed Manuscript Map of the Republic of Lucca and Part of Tuscany From the Collection of General Nicholas Charles Oudinot

Fine manuscript map of the Republic of Lucca and part of the State of Tuscany, drawn during the period where the region was controlled by Napoleon's France.

The map includes Florence, Lucca, Pisa, and Spezia, illustrating in meticulous detail the roads, rivers, mountains, lakes and valleys of the region.

In 1805, the Lucca region was conquered by Napoleon, who merged Lucca with the Principality of Piombino, forming the Principality of Lucca and Piombino (1805–1809). Napoleon gave his sister Elisa Bonaparte Baciocchi control, naming here "Princess of Lucca." Elisa began rule as the Duchess of Lucca and Princess of Piombino, based at Villa Reale di Marlia.

The map is signed on the covers by "Citoyen Rousseau" and on the map by "Par Rousseau Chef de Section des Ingenieurs Geographes."

General Nicolas Charles Oudinot

A final detail that gives this map particular importance is the identity of its former owner, Nicolas Charles Oudinot, 1st Comte Oudinot, 1st Duc de Reggio (1767 - 1848), and a Marshal of France. A fierce fighter, the man was wounded no less than 34 times during his military career!

The only one of nine siblings to live past childhood, Oudinot joined the army without a noble pedigree, and therefore without a chance of high promotion. That all changed in 1792, with the outbreak of the French Revolution. In that year, Oudinot was elected lieutenant-colonel of the third battalion of the volunteers of the Meuse. After transfer to the regular army and admirable service in Belgium, he was promoted to the rank of general in June 1794 after the Battle of Kaiserslautern.

From Belgium he shifted to the German and Swiss fronts, where he fought as a general of division and chief of staff to Andre Massena. Oudinot stood out at the Battle of Monzambano so much so that Napoleon himself presented him with a sword of honor, now known as the Legion d'Honneur. Napoleon did not forget him after he established his empire; now Emperor Napoleon recognized Oudinot again, this time with a Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor.

During the Napoleonic Wars, Oudinot continued to acquit himself commendably. He was elected a member of the Chamber of Deputies, commanded a company of grenadiers nicknamed for him, and fought in battles from Vienna to Poland. In 1808, he was appointed governor of Erfurt and was made a Count of the French Empire. Finally, in 1809, after the Battle of Wagram, he was named a Marshal of France, France's highest military distinction.

Oudinot continued to serve as an administrator in Holland and on the battlefield in the Russian campaign. After Napoleon's fall, Oudinot joined the Bourbon Restoration and stayed loyal to the King even after Napoleon's return in 1815. For his loyalty and service, he was named a peer of the realm. He served until 1823, when he participated in the French invasion of Spain. Then, he turned again to political and administrative appointments; he died while serving as governor of Les Invalides, at the veterans' hospital in Paris.

Provenance

Purchased at auction in Paris, from Artcuriel, Collections from the Castle of Malicorne Marshal Oudinot's Historical Souvenirs, June 13, 2017 (Lot 156).