APPEL À LA JUSTICE DE L'ETAT; OU RECUEIL DE LETTRES, AU ROI, AU PRINCE DE GALLES, ET AUX MINISTRES; AVEC UNE LETTRE A MESSIEURS LES CANADIENS.UNE LETTRE AU GENERAL HALDIMAND LUI-MEME. EN FIN UNE DERNIERE LETTRE A MILORD SIDNEY.

Du Calvet, Pierre

Published by Londres, 1784

About this Item

[4],xiv,320,viii pp. Half title. Modern half morocco and marbled boards, spine with raised bands, leather labels stamped in gilt. Half title stained at gutter, scattered light foxing heavier to last few leaves. Very good overall. An account of the tribulations experienced by a French Protestant in Canada at the hands of the British. "During the American Revolution the British in Canada were suspicious of the loyalty of the French inhabitants. Du Calvet was one of those who were harassed by the authorities. This is his personal story of the unhappy affair. It is recorded that Francis Maseres helped Du Calvet write this book" - Lande. Du Calvet had remained in Canada after the cession of the country to the British in 1763, and was chosen as a magistrate for the city of Montreal under the British government. As a Justice of the Peace, he argued forcefully for judicial reform. In 1780, Du Calvet was arrested under suspicions of collaboration with the Americans and imprisoned for three years without trial. The former judge felt this injustice keenly, and it forms the basis for this collection of letters in which he lays out his case to the people of Quebec and encourages them to fight for constitutional reform (and in particular for the right of habeas corpus). The author went to England in 1783 to take legal action against governor Haldimand and the other officials who had violated his rights, where he met with the English lawyer and judge Francis Maseres, who helped the Francophone Du Calvet write and publish about his case in English and championed the cause of French Canadian constitutional reform. While preparations for the lawsuits were underway, Du Calvet's struggle was tragically cut short when the ship that was carrying him from New York to Paris was lost at sea in 1786. An important work in the history of Quebec and for any collection of French Canadiana. SABIN 21044. LANDE 197. TPL 569. DIONNE II:856. Seller Inventory # WRCAM57735

Bibliographic Details

Title: APPEL À LA JUSTICE DE L'ETAT; OU RECUEIL DE ...

Publisher: Londres

Publication Date: 1784