Leighton Library, Dunblane

Scotland's oldest purpose-built independent library founded in 1687

Leighton Library has 1663 first edition of "Discours politiques des rois" by Georges de Scudéry

Added at 07:42 on 22 August 2025

The Leighton Library has a 1663 first edition of "Discours politiques des rois" (Political Discourse of Kings) by French novelist, dramatist and poet Georges de Scudéry who was born #OnThisDay 22 August 1601.

This comprises twenty invented fictional political speeches attributed to historical rulers and figures, from Charles V to Scanderbeg to Gustavus Adolphus. These showcased Scudéry’s flair for dramatisation, blending political philosophy, historical fiction, and theatrical monologue, offering insights into leadership, justice, and statecraft through imagined dialogue.

The book functions as a kind of “mirror for princes”, aimed at educating rulers through exemplary models, using historical personas to explore themes of power, virtue, diplomacy, and governance.

It reflected the intellectual climate of Louis XIV’s early reign, when political discourse was being reshaped by courtly and literary circles.

< Leighton Library has 1769 edition of "Letters of the Right Honourable Lady Mary Wortley Montagu : written, during her travels in Europe, Asia and Africa" by Mary Wortley Montagu