Jean Michel Constant Leber
Encyclopedia
Jean Michel Constant Leber (1780–1859), French historian and bibliophile, was born at Orléans
on 8 May 1780. His first work was a poem on Joan of Arc (1804); but he wrote at the same time a Grammaire gendral synthetique, which attracted the attention of J. M. de Grando, then secretary-general to the ministry of the interior. The latter found him a minor post in his department, which left him leisure for his historical work. He even took him to Italy when Napoleon was trying to organize, after French models, the Roman
states which he had taken from the Pope
in 1809. Leber however did not stay there long, for he considered the attacks on the temporal property of the Holy See
to be sacrilegious.
On his return to Paris he resumed his administrative work, literary recreations and historical researches. While spending a part of his time writing vaudeville
s and comic opera
s, he began to collect old essays and rare pamphlets by old French historians. His office was preserved to him by the Restoration, and Leber put his literary gifts at the service of the government. When the question of the coronation of Louis XVIII
arose, he wrote, as an answer to Volney
, a minute treatise on the Harmonies du sacre, which was published at the time of the coronation of Charles X
.
Towards the end of Villes' ministry, when there was a movement of public opinion in favor of extending municipal liberties, he undertook the defence of the threatened system of centralization, and composed, in answer to François Raynouard
, an Histoire critique du pouvoir municipal depuis l'origine de la monarchie jusqu'à nos jours (1828). He also wrote a treatise entitled De l'Etat de la presse et des pamphlets depuis François et jusquà Louis XIV (1834), in which be refuted an empty paradox of Charles Nodier
, who had tried to prove that the press had never been, and could never be, so free as under the Grand Monarch.
A few years later, Leber retired (1839), and sold to the library of Rouen
the rich collection of books which he had amassed during thirty years of research. The catalogue he made himself (4 vols., 1839 to 1852). In 1840 he read at the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres two dissertations, an Essai sur l'appréciation de la fortune privée au Moyen Age, followed, by an Examen critique des tables de prix du marc d'argent depuis l'époque de Saint Louis; these essays were included by the Academy in its Recueil de mémoires présentes par divers savants (vol. i., 1844), and were also revised and published by Leber (1847). They form his most considerable work, and assure him a position of eminence in the economic history of France. He also rendered good service to historians by the publication of his Collection des meilleures dissertations, notices et traités relatés de l'histoire de France (20 vols., 1826–1840); in the absence of an index, since Leber did not leave one, an analytical table of contents is to be found in Alfred Franklin's Sources de l'histoire de France (1876, pp. 342 sqq.). In consequence of the revolution of 1848, Leber decided to leave Paris. He retired to his native town, and spent his last years in collecting old engravings. He died at Orléans on 22 December 1859.
In 1832 he had been elected as a member of the Societé des Antiquaires de France
, and in the Bulletin of this society (vol. i., 1860) is to be found the most correct and detailed account of his life's works.
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
on 8 May 1780. His first work was a poem on Joan of Arc (1804); but he wrote at the same time a Grammaire gendral synthetique, which attracted the attention of J. M. de Grando, then secretary-general to the ministry of the interior. The latter found him a minor post in his department, which left him leisure for his historical work. He even took him to Italy when Napoleon was trying to organize, after French models, the Roman
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
states which he had taken from the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
in 1809. Leber however did not stay there long, for he considered the attacks on the temporal property of the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
to be sacrilegious.
On his return to Paris he resumed his administrative work, literary recreations and historical researches. While spending a part of his time writing vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
s and comic opera
Comic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
s, he began to collect old essays and rare pamphlets by old French historians. His office was preserved to him by the Restoration, and Leber put his literary gifts at the service of the government. When the question of the coronation of Louis XVIII
Louis XVIII of France
Louis XVIII , known as "the Unavoidable", was King of France and of Navarre from 1814 to 1824, omitting the Hundred Days in 1815...
arose, he wrote, as an answer to Volney
Volney
Volney may refer to:*Comte de Volney or Constantin-François Chassebœuf , French philosopher, historian, orientalist, and politician*Volney, New York a town in Oswego County, New York, United States*Volney Prize, an award by the Institut de France...
, a minute treatise on the Harmonies du sacre, which was published at the time of the coronation of Charles X
Charles X of France
Charles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...
.
Towards the end of Villes' ministry, when there was a movement of public opinion in favor of extending municipal liberties, he undertook the defence of the threatened system of centralization, and composed, in answer to François Raynouard
François Juste Marie Raynouard
François Juste Marie Raynouard was a French dramatist and academic.He was born at Brignoles in Provence, trained for the bar, and practised at Draguignan. In 1791 he went to Paris as deputy to the Legislative Assembly, but after the fall of the Girondists, whom he followed, he went into hiding...
, an Histoire critique du pouvoir municipal depuis l'origine de la monarchie jusqu'à nos jours (1828). He also wrote a treatise entitled De l'Etat de la presse et des pamphlets depuis François et jusquà Louis XIV (1834), in which be refuted an empty paradox of Charles Nodier
Charles Nodier
Jean Charles Emmanuel Nodier , was a French author who introduced a younger generation of Romanticists to the conte fantastique, gothic literature, vampire tales, and the importance of dreams as part of literary creation, and whose career as a librarian is often underestimated by literary...
, who had tried to prove that the press had never been, and could never be, so free as under the Grand Monarch.
A few years later, Leber retired (1839), and sold to the library of Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
the rich collection of books which he had amassed during thirty years of research. The catalogue he made himself (4 vols., 1839 to 1852). In 1840 he read at the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres two dissertations, an Essai sur l'appréciation de la fortune privée au Moyen Age, followed, by an Examen critique des tables de prix du marc d'argent depuis l'époque de Saint Louis; these essays were included by the Academy in its Recueil de mémoires présentes par divers savants (vol. i., 1844), and were also revised and published by Leber (1847). They form his most considerable work, and assure him a position of eminence in the economic history of France. He also rendered good service to historians by the publication of his Collection des meilleures dissertations, notices et traités relatés de l'histoire de France (20 vols., 1826–1840); in the absence of an index, since Leber did not leave one, an analytical table of contents is to be found in Alfred Franklin's Sources de l'histoire de France (1876, pp. 342 sqq.). In consequence of the revolution of 1848, Leber decided to leave Paris. He retired to his native town, and spent his last years in collecting old engravings. He died at Orléans on 22 December 1859.
In 1832 he had been elected as a member of the Societé des Antiquaires de France
Societé des Antiquaires de France
The Société des Antiquaires de France is a Parisian historical and archaeological society, founded in 1804 under the name of the Académie celtique...
, and in the Bulletin of this society (vol. i., 1860) is to be found the most correct and detailed account of his life's works.