Published in Toulouse in 1791, during the opening years of the French Revolution, this expanded edition of Voltaire's celebrated epic poem La Henriade reflects the growing influence of Enlightenment thought in late eighteenth-century France.

 

Dedicated to King Henry IV, the work explores themes of religious tolerance, civil conflict, and enlightened leadership while remaining one of Voltaire's most influential literary achievements.

 

Issued as a "Nouvelle Édition Corrigée" (New Corrected Edition), this printing was intended as a substantially expanded scholarly edition. In addition to the poem itself, it incorporates textual variants, earlier prefaces and notes, Voltaire's essay on epic poetry, material relating to the French civil wars, and other supplementary texts gathered from previous editions.

 

Printed by N.-Étienne Sens in Toulouse, this attractive provincial French edition appears considerably less frequently on today's antiquarian market than the more commonly encountered Paris printings. The volume remains bound in its original eighteenth-century binding with a gilt-decorated spine and retains numerous decorative engraved ornaments throughout.

 

The text is complete, with clean pages and excellent preservation for a book produced more than 230 years ago.

 

As both an important literary work and an artifact of Revolutionary France, this volume represents an excellent example of eighteenth-century French printing and Voltaire's enduring influence on European intellectual history.