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Description

Homann Heirs edition of Pierre Chassereau's Rare Plan of Cartagena

Finely colored example of this early plan of Cartagena by the Heirs of J.B. Homann, based upon a very rare English chart by Pierre Chassereau, originally published in London on April 21, 1740.

Chassereau's original plan gave a detailed account of the French Raid in May 1697.

In the text below, there is a brief history of Cartagena, from its settlement in 1532 until 1540, its sack by Francis Drake in 1585, and its bloody conquest by de Pointis, along with an assessment of the size of the French forces which undertook the 1697 raid under the command of Baron De Pointis.

Chassereau's plan is one of the only surviving maps of Cartagena to show the French Raid, led by Baron De Pointis in 1697. A daring raid, the French attack on Cartagena proved wildly successful for both its French sponsor, Louix XIV, and its leader, and resulting decimating losses not only in Cartagena, but to the English and Dutch Fleets that gave chase to De Pointis following the raid.

The map is oriented with east at the top and is meticulously annotated with details of the battle. The positions of the French Fleet, landing parties, artillery and fortifications are shown.

The French Raid of Cartagena

The French raid on Cartagena took place on May 6, 1697, as part of the War of the Grand Alliance (also called King William's War), a battle which pitted Louis XIV of France against an Alliance of Austria, The Holy Roman Empire, Holland, Spain and Britain. While primarily waged on the European continent, the raid included skirmishes in North America and the Caribbean.

At the end of the 17th Century, prior to the commencement of the war, the French Navy had been reduced largely to privateering, a form of state sanctioned piracy. Bernard Desjean, Baron de Pointis, active in the Caribbean from the beginning of the war, was able to convince King Louis XIV of France to let him try a daring attack on the richest city of the region, Cartagena, in present-day Colombia.

Louis XIV authorized seven large ships, three frigates, and some smaller vessels. De Pointis' fleet sailed from Brest on January 7, 1697, arriving in Santo Domingo on March 3, 1697. There, governor Jean du Casse agreed to reinforce De Pontis and in April, De Pointis' fleet with 1,200 soldiers and 650 buccaneers arrived in Cartagena.

The Spanish defense of Cartagena was limited, and De Pointis conquered both fortresses which defended Cartagena relatively easily, losing only sixty men. From May 6 to May 24, French plundered the city, accumulating loot valued at ten to twenty million livres.

De Pointis then set sail directly for France, cheating his buccaneer allies of their promised share of the loot. Outraged, the buccaneers returned and struck Cartagena a second time.

During his return voyage to France, De Pointis managed to avoid the English Admiral John Nevell, whose squadron had been diverted from Cadiz, Spain, to pursue De Pointis. After 3 days of pursuit, Nevell captured only a single ship, which was a hospital ship infested with yellow fever. The disease spread quickly through the English and Dutch fleets,killin 1,300 English sailors, six captains, and Admiral Nevell. The Dutch were similary impacted, with only one captain in the Dutch fleet surviving.

The French Fleet faired better, and De Pointis delivered 2 Million livres to Louis XIV, leaving De Pointis with a massive fortune. The official account of the expedition was published the following year in Amsterdam and is entitled Relation de l'expédition de Carthagène faite par les François en 1697.

The present map is the only other contemporary copy of Chassereau's now extremely rare map.

Homann Heirs Biography

Homann Heirs was a German publishing firm that enjoyed a major place in the European map market throughout the eighteenth century. Founded in 1702 by Johann Baptist Homann, the business passed to his son, Christoph, upon Johann’s death in 1724. Christoph died in 1730, aged only 27, and the firm was inherited by subsequent Homann heirs. This altered the name of the company, which was known as Homann Erben, or Homann heirs. The firm continued in business until 1848.