18th Century

Transcription (Partial – normalized spelling) 19 mars 1748 Le Sieur Lanchon procureur de Jean Durand marchand demeurant à Largy paroisse de Saint … défendeur contre Messire Latanery chevalier seigneur de … … demandant déposition sur le fait du prétendu déballage … pour défendre aux demandes formées audit seigneur de … fait ce dix-neuf mars 1748. (Some words remain uncertain due to overwriting and fading.) English Translation (Summary) March 19, 1748 Mr. Lanchon, acting as procurator for Jean Durand, a merchant residing in Largy in the parish of Saint …, appears as defendant against Messire Latanery, knight and seigneur of … requesting testimony concerning the alleged matter in dispute. The declaration is made in order to defend against the claims brought by the said seigneur. Written on the nineteenth day of March, 1748.

This document illustrates the legal culture of Ancien Régime France, where disputes between commoners and members of the minor nobility were handled through formal judicial petitions and depositions. Merchants frequently relied on legal representatives (procureurs) to defend their interests before regional courts. The presence of a royal stamped paper seal bearing the Bourbon coat of arms demonstrates the administrative system by which the crown regulated legal documentation and collected revenue through taxed paper. Such documents reveal the social hierarchy and legal mechanisms governing commerce and honor disputes in eighteenth-century French society.

Description

This manuscript legal document records proceedings connected to a dispute involving a merchant and a local seigneur in eighteenth-century France. Written in 1748 on officially stamped fiscal paper bearing the Bourbon royal arms, the document reflects the structured legal procedures of the French monarchy prior to the Revolution. The text references a procurator acting on behalf of a merchant defendant, responding to accusations brought by a knight and seigneur. Such documents reveal the functioning of provincial justice, where commercial disagreements, accusations, or insults could escalate into formal legal matters requiring written defense. Stamped paper was mandatory for many legal acts under the monarchy, serving both as authentication and as a source of tax revenue for the crown. As a result, surviving examples like this one provide valuable insight into the administrative systems and social dynamics of early modern France.