1819 French Noble’s Letter Pleading with a Vicomte to Hire a Friend at St. Anthony’s Hospital

On offer is an interesting letter written to one of the most senior members of French nobility.

The letter is written by a Monsieur de la Placy. In it, he makes a request to an unidentified ‘Vicomte”: 

de vouloir bien donne votre suffrage a M. Magendie, docteur en medecine pour la place d'adjoin a l'hopital St. Antoine...

[Translation: to kindly give your vote to Mr. Magendie, doctor of medicine for the position of assistant at St. Anthony's Hospital…]

Because of the date, it it is reasonable to assume that this letter is addressed to either François Alexandre Frédéric de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt, duc de Rochefoucauld or Mathieu Jean Felicité de Montmorency, duc de Montmorency-Laval. Both men had direct connections to the medical world in Paris at the time.

Rochefoucauld was a very prominent social reformer of the time. He was active in the administration and operations of medical facilities. He was one of the first promoters of vaccinations in France. He had established a dispensary in Paris and he was an active member of the central boards of administration for hospitals.

Montmerency was a very close friend to Germaine de Stael, the daughter of Jacques and Suzanne Necker, Necker was Minister of Finance for France and his wife was very involved in efforts to provide medical care to the poor and founder of the Necker Hospital – now the Necker – Enfants Malades Hospital.

Either of these 2 men would have been able to offer significant assistance to a person seeking a medical appointment.

For a social historian, this is an excellent example of the type of correspondence that would have taken place among those seeking favours and positions. It is also a direct connection to one of France’s great noble families.

The letter measures 7.5 inches by 5.75 inches. The document is comprised of a single sheet folded to form 2 leafs. It is about 1/3 complete. The paper is in good condition and the handwriting is legible.