577 x 488 mm. Folds and crease marks, old folds flattened, excellent condition.

Montauban, a stronghold of the Huguenots, was one of the most important Protestant cities in southern France. The siege of 1621 was part of Louis XIII’s campaign to bring rebellious Protestant cities under royal control. After securing Saint-Jean-d’Angély earlier that year, the king turned his attention to Montauban, a well-fortified city with a determined Protestant defense. Royal forces, commanded by the Duke of Mayenne and Charles de Valois, Duke of Angoulême, began their assault in August 1621, establishing extensive siege lines, artillery emplacements, and encampments, all carefully depicted on this map.

Despite a prolonged and heavily fortified siege, the defenders of Montauban successfully repelled the royal forces, aided by their strong fortifications and skillful use of counter-artillery. The siege ultimately failed, and Louis XIII withdrew his army in November 1621, marking one of the most significant Huguenot victories in the early Bourbon consolidation of power. Montauban remained an independent Protestant stronghold until the later campaigns of Richelieu in the 1620s, when the monarchy finally subdued Huguenot resistance.

The letterpress text below the map recounts Montauban’s history, its military significance, and the events of the siege. A table on the right identifies key locations, including city gates, strongholds, bastions, and siege batteries. The engraving highlights the structured approach to seventeenth-century siege warfare, emphasizing the use of bastioned fortifications, strategic artillery placements, and surrounding trench networks.

We locate copies at Columbia University, the BNF and the British Library.