Voltaire begins by saying that he is staying at Condrieux. He flatters Servan and asks after his health, before going on to complain about his exile from Paris. Voltaire then asks Servan for advice on which books to read to gain an understanding of the laws of modern governments such as Denmark and Sweden, rather than those of past governments such as Rome and Sparta.

Marie-Louise Denis nominates Joseph-Marie Balledier as the Prosecutor of Ferney for an annual wage of 100₶. This is followed by the dismissal of Balleydier on 29 December 1773. Here it is noted that Balleydier was offered 56₶ 16c for the month of August 1773 which he refused to accept. This money, along with an additional 200₶, was deposited with Jean-Louis Raynaud until the affairs were settled. As Balleydier neglected the affairs and wrote insulting letter, Marie-Louise Denis dismisses him, adding that he will not be payed his wages for the past two years as he never presented himself in Ferney during that time except for at assizes for which he was paid additional sums. The remainder of the document concerns the settlement of the dispute between the two parties. The document is bound with a letter from Marie-Louise Denis to Marc Duval, written in the hand of Wagnière from Ferney and dating to c.16 January 1774.

The certificate states that Voltaire follows and observes social and religious laws at the Château de Ferney.

The notes include quotations from Voltaire, Cicero’s De officiis, Justinian’s Digesten, and Arnobius’ Contra gentes/Adversus nationes. They were likely compiled by Gijsbert Jan van Hardenbroek (1719-1788)

Documents include many on the administration of the Département du Nord and the departments of the Gironde and Isère in the 1790’s, including certificates of baptism and other documents on questions of residence, and documents on the identification and arrest of emigrés from France. Also included are many legal documents ranging from 1629-1810, including opinions and verdicts in civil lawsuits; documents on issues of inheritance and succession; 18th-century marriage contracts and divorce papers; deeds to houses and land titles; and powers of attorney. Other documents include a military discharge dated 1582, military service and pension records, and other documents concerning the French army from 1710-1815.

Also included are census data for Albania and Dalmatia for 1781; correspondence of various French government officials, from the 1870’s and early 20th century; detailed work contracts for repairs and rebuilding of a chateau in 1803, signed by carpenter Jean Baptiste Echeuvin and by Jean Pierre Fluchaire; the autograph text of an address to the king by Monseigneur Leveque on behalf of France’s bishops in 1735; a chapbook quoting extensively from Voltaire, especially on the subject of women and on Christianity; a book-length manuscript on the Jesuits, written after 1810; manuscript essays on the relationship of church and state, apparently dating from the 18th century; a genealogy of the family Le Brun de Rabot, dated 1826; letters of recommendation for students seeking admission to a school, by Marc-Antoine Jullien; an essay criticizing the Gazette de France and the French government for not upholding freedom of the press, apparently 18th century; and correspondence by various 19th-century journalists on editing, publishing and social matters.

Photographs, apparently of the 19th century, show views of Venice and Avignon. Engravings include views of Amiens in the early 19th century and portraits of French authors René Charles de Maupeou, Paul Deroulède, Victorien Sardou, Ludovic Halévy, Mme. Eugènie Foa, and Othenin, comte d’Haussonville.

Correspondents include Louis Barthou; Henri Rochefort; René-Richard Castel; Barthelemy St. Hilaire; Augustin Louis, marquis de Ximenès; Louis-Joseph de Bourbon, prince of Conti; comte Arthur O’Mahony; Artaud de Montor; Alexis Nicolas Pérignon; Auguste Maguet; Jules Ferry; Miguet, secretary of the Institut impérial de France, later the Institut de France; Jules Michelet; A. Augustin-Louis Laya; Jules Lecomte; Othenin, comte d’Haussonville; Calmann Lévy; Adèle Esquiros; Gabriel, comte d’Haussonville; Etienne Vigée; and Auguste Guinard.

The collection includes: historical miscellanea on government, law, political philosophy, church hierarchy, and contemporary politicians. Notes on Carolingian, Confucian, Solomonic, Egyptian, Roman, Athenian, and Spartan laws; on slavery and legal status of mixed-race children in the West Indies; on the Spanish Inquisition and Protestant Reformation; on English kings and queens; against universal suffrage; on Catholic clergy in Ireland; on the House of Commons; axioms of Burgleigh [sic]; a few brief riddles and verse satires. Includes a brief excerpt from David Hume’s History of England, quotes from la Bruyere, Byron, Dryden, Voltaire, and others, and several excerpts in French, and a few in Latin. Entries dated 1821-1840.

Notes from 1833 refer to article by Mr Everett on Tocqueville’s work on American penal system and articles from North American Review comparing prison regimes. Discusses in detail experiments by Mr Lawes in using sewerage as fertilizer to increase crop production; refers to letter in family’s possession from Voltaire to Samuel Estwick which has been dated by Macaulay and compared with Voltaire’s writing; letter copied on f 11v; refers to price of land at sales; includes notes in French on Thiers’ ‘Historie de l’Empire Vol 8’ from 1853; refers to trustees and arrangements for family trusts. Comments on parliamentary affairs during sessions of 1850-51 including vote on Greek Question 1850; refers to case in Court of Common Pleas; discusses workings of specific committees including those on gevernment finances; refers to resignation and reappointment of Government.

Os D 12/1/1 found enclosed.

A document concerning the case of François-Jean de la Barre, and Mr Belleval prepared by or for Voltaire’s great nephew, Alexandre Marie François de Paule de Dompierre d’Hornoy. The document contains abstracts from 50 documents relating to the order of procedure in the trial of de la Barre between 1765 and 1766.

This is a letter to Derrey de Roqueville, who was a lawyer to the Parliament of Toulouse. A note beneath the letter explains that Roqueville had made a plea for a man named Louis Dussot, ‘the father of a large and poor family’. Louis Dussot wanted to claim part of a large inheritance which his brother had bequeathed to the Hospital of Montpellier. In the body of the letter Voltaire praises Roqueville’s eloquence, and offers his opinions on the Louis Dussot case. He ends by saying that ‘All laws which contradict nature are unjust.’ The letter has been misdated by the University of Southern California, and was written on 12 July 1769 rather than 1777 as they suggest.

Part of a dossier concerning the trial of Jean François Lefèvre, chevalier de La Barre, mostly documents for the defence prepared by or for Voltaire’s great nephew, Alexandre Marie François de Paule de Dompierre d’Hornoy.