The manuscript is an autograph letter starting with a poem comprised of two stanzas. The main body of the letter reflects on the writer’s stay at the château de Maulevrier and their engagement with Voltaire’s literary works, notably Tancrede and La Henriade. The author also mentions Le sujet de poësie proposed by L’académie française and his unsuccessful efforts in acquiring the dictionaire enciclopédique.

The speech was printed in the same year as it was delievered, 1746, and later in the ‘Suite des mélanges de littérature’ in the Collection complette des oeuvres de M. de Voltaire (Geneva, 1770), vol.vi, p.179-200.

The letter concerns the election of La Ville to the Académie française. Voltaire writes that d’Argenson should feel sure that he will overcome everything as it would be impossible for such a noble heart and right mind not to assure everything that he deserves.

Voltaire discusses the first translation of Shakespeare into French by Pierre Le Tourneur. He writes that l’academie must read to the public ‘this anti barbarian this anti Gilles [William] Shakespear[e]’ on the 24 august day of St Louis. Voltaire notes that the text must be made less unworthy of being read on such a solemn day and asks that the manuscript is resent to him so that he can correct it.

Voltaire thanks the recipient for what he has been good enough to do for Voltaire’s adopted son-in-law Dupuits who married Mlle. Corneille. He adds that he has just read a worthy eulogy of encouragement that the recipient gave to soldiers in a speech delivered at l’Académie française and claims that it is one of the most beautiful instututions ever made that deserves to be consecrated in history.

In 1863, Dupanloup opposed the condidacy of Emile Littré due to his atheism and prevented his election to l’Académie française. In 1871, Littré was again a candidate and this time was elected, angering Dupanloup who then resigned. He was encouraged to reconsider his resignation by [François] Guizot and composed this letter in 1872 to explain his reasons for resigning. He notes that he still feels that the election of Littré was a ‘very regretable error’ on the part of l’Académie française before discussing their election of atheists in the past. Dupanloup first turns to Voltaire, whom he calls a ‘great wrecker’, adding that he thought it clever to wage war on Christianity and hide in l’Académie française behing auxiliaries more advanced than himself, and that Voltaire tried to get his fellow atheists [Denis] Diderot, [Claude Adrien] Helvétius, and [Paul-Henri Thiry] Baron D’Holbach elected as well but failed to succeed despite putting pressure on [Jean le Rond] D’Alembert. He notes that Voltaire had counted on the protection of Madame de Pompadour but that she could not help. He concludes that l’Académie française did not allow itself to be undermined by atheism in the eighteenth century and those that claimed to be Professors of Atheism, such as [Pierre Jean Georges] Cabanis and [François-Joseph-Victor] Broussais were never able to break through, and that this was one more reason for him to believe that he had to resign.