COPPERPLATE ENGRAVINGS BY ALLAIN MANESSON MALLET

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Allain Manesson Mallet (1630–1706)

(Ingenieur des Camps et Armees dv Roy)

CLOSE TO 340 YEARD OLD!

Mallet was a French cartographer and engineer. He started his career as a soldier in the army of Louis XIV, became a Sergeant-Major in the artillery and an Inspector of Fortifications. He also served under the King of Portugal, before returning to France, and his appointment to the court of Louis XIV. His military engineering and mathematical background led to his position teaching mathematics at court.

His major publications were Description de L'Univers (1683) in 5 volumes, and Les Travaux de Mars ou l'Art de la Guerre (1684) in 3 volumes.

His Description de L'Universe contains a wide variety of information, including star maps, maps of the ancient and modern world, and a synopsis of the customs, religion and government of the many nations included in his text. It has been suggested that his background as a teacher led to his being concerned with entertaining his readers. This concern manifested itself in the charming harbour scenes and rural landscapes that he included beneath his description of astronomical concepts and diagrams. Mallet himself drew most of the figures that were engraved for this book.

Alain Manesson Mallet (1630-1706) studied mathematics and geometry at the College of Burgundy, under the military engineer, Philippe Mallet (1606-1679). Alain Manesson then became a musketeer in the regiment of guards of Louis XIV. In 1663 he left for Portugal to enter the service of Alfonso VI. Under Marshal Schomberg Mallet served as an engineer and rose to the rank of sargento-mor (equivalent to commander) of artillery and inspector of fortifications. He greatly assisted in the fortification of Portugal in its skirmishes against Spain during the Portuguese War of Independence.

In 1667 the King of France, Louis XIV drew up a covenant with King Alfonso VI of Portugal, requiring the Spanish monarchy to end the war and sign the Treaty of Independence of Portugal in 1668. Mallet returned to France, and was appointed mathematics teacher of the pages of the King in Little Stable, Versailles (reserved for the sons of the noble families whose antiquity dated back to 1550 or earlier). As master of mathematics Mallet had time to write.

In 1671 his first publication was on military science and the art of siege warfare. It was so successful that it was translated into German the following year, and then several counterfeit copies were published. In 1684 Mallet published his updated work Travaux de Mars, ou l’art de war  “on observations I’ve made on the art of war”, and provided engraved diagrams for the fortifications of cities and towns throughout Europe and included small scenes “to inspire young nobles to learn to draw, because in fortifications, drawing is not simply a noble propriety, but an absolute necessity”.