Louis-Georges de Bréquigny facts for kids
Louis-Georges-Oudard-Feudrix de Bréquigny was a French scholar. He was born in Granville, France, in 1714. He spent his life studying history and old documents.
Early Life and Studies
Bréquigny started his writing career without using his name. His first books were about the history of Genoa. He also wrote about the lives of famous Greek speakers.
In 1754, he began working on a very large project. This project was about the laws and orders from the early Kings of France. He published five more books for this important series.
In 1759, Bréquigny became a member of a famous group. This group was called the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. For this group, he wrote about Postumus, an emperor of Gaul. He also wrote about how the religion and empire of Muhammad began.
Discovering French History in England
After a major war, Bréquigny went to Great Britain. His job was to search through old records. He was looking for documents that showed how French provinces once belonged to England.
This mission happened between 1764 and 1766. It was very successful! Bréquigny brought back copies of about 7,000 documents. These copies are now kept in the French National Library.
Later, some of these documents were published. They were called Letters of Kings, Queens and Other Persons of the Courts of France and England. This collection included letters from Louis VII to Henry IV.
Important Historical Works
Bréquigny used the documents he found to write many important studies. These studies were published by the Académie des Inscriptions. Some of his works included:
- A study about the disagreements between France and England. This was during the time of King Charles the Fair.
- A study about the life of Mary, Queen of France. She was the sister of King Henry VIII of England.
- Four studies that helped tell the history of the town of Calais.
- A study about the marriage plans for Elizabeth, Queen of England. She was first planned to marry the Duke of Anjou. Then, she was planned to marry the Duke of Alençon. Both dukes were brothers of King Charles IX of France.
Bréquigny also helped with other big historical projects. He worked on a Chronological Table of Diplomas. This table listed many important documents about French history. He also started a large collection of documents similar to a famous English collection called Foedera.
He began another project in 1776. This was a collection of studies about the history, science, and arts of the Chinese. However, the French Revolution stopped him from finishing this work.
