03429cam a22003373u 4500 76902 UtSlPG 20260610134800.0 m cr n 260607r20251838utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d UtSlPG en iso639-1 DC Davenport, R. A. (Richard Alfred), 1777?-1852 The history of the Bastile, and of its principal captives Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg, 2025 1 online resource : multiple file formats text txt rdacontent computer c rdamedia online resource cr rdacarrier Release date is 2025-09-20 Charlene Taylor and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) "The history of the Bastile, and of its principal captives" by R. A. Davenport is a historical account written in the early 19th century. It examines the notorious Paris state prison, detailing its origins, structure, administration, the machinery of lettres de cachet, the daily realities of confinement, and the stories of prominent prisoners across successive French reigns, with a clear moral stance against arbitrary power. The opening of the work sets its scope and purpose: the author admits space constraints, promises accuracy and fairness, and aims to unite information with engagement. It then outlines the book’s breadth via a detailed contents list and a plan of the fortress, before Chapter I gives a close, almost architectural tour of the Bastile—its courts, towers, dungeons, rooms, meagre furnishings, food allowances and abuses, the tiny library, and chapel niches—alongside an explanation of lettres de cachet, their uses and abuses, and the secrecy that shrouded arrests, correspondence, illness, death, and burial. Vivid particulars include corrupt provisioning, the suppression of letters, bans on tools and even compasses, night-time isolation, medical delays, refusal to permit wills, and the masking of identities after death; a first-person narrative of an eight-month inmate illustrates the routine of arrest, processing, confinement, limited exercise, controlled reading, and ultimate release with none of his letters delivered. Chapter II begins the chronological history: the term “Bastile,” early Paris bastiles, the founding efforts of Stephen Marcel and later enlargements by Hugh Aubriot (whose downfall to university and clerical hostility and brief liberation during a popular rising are recounted), then political imprisonments under Charles VI, including Noviant and La Rivière, the fall of Montaigu, and the factional struggle between Burgundians and Armagnacs centered in Paris. It closes amid the rise and peril of Provost Peter des Essarts—his seizure of the Bastile and the Burgundian-orchestrated popular siege—where the excerpt breaks off. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Originally published: London: Thomas Tegg and Son, 1838 Bastille -- History Prisons -- France -- History Political crimes and offenses -- France https://archive.org/details/historyofbastile00daveuoft/page/n5/mode/2up https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/76902 117627 117627