1804 Georges Henri Victor Collot Spy Atlas of the American Interior
DESCRIPTION
The Georges Henri Victor Collot Spy Atlas of the American Interior.
It is one of the rarest and most intriguing published work of maps and prints concerning the western frontier following the Treaty of Paris. The atlas follows the Ohio River from Pittsburgh to the Mississippi, then north to the Missouri and Illinois Rivers before continuing south, down the Mississippi to New Orleans. The atlas includes many highly detailed maps, views, and depictions of towns, forts, and drawings from his first-hand observations.
Backstory of the Objective of Collot’s Mission
In 1763, the territory west of the Mississippi River was ceded to Spain by France, while the lands east of the river were ceded to Britain. In 1783, the lands east of the Mississippi formally became territory of the United States, although American possession of the region was tenuous at best. The predominantly French inhabitants of the Mississippi Valley had little desire for Anglo-American rule, and their frontier lifestyle made them virtually impossible to control.
In 1796, the French ambassador to the United States, Pierre-Auguste Adet, enlisted General Georges Henri Victor Collot to undertake a reconnaissance mission to the Mississippi frontier. Collot’s objective was to gather information about the region and evaluate the prospects it being retaken by France.
Contrary to most spy missions, the United States was well aware of Collot’s reconnaissance mission and the intentions behind it. At one point, he was arrested by Zebulon Pike and held captive at Fort Massac on the Ohio River but was let go as Pike had no legal means for detaining him.
Collot would continue his journey gathering a wealth of information regarding the Trans-Mississippi West, much of it coming to him while in St. Louis. One of the maps included in the atlas is without argument, the most advanced map of that region west of the Mississippi predating the Lewis and Clark expedition.
What Happened to the Motivations Behind this Mission?
In 1800, Napoleon acquired Louisiana from Spain, with Collot named as one of the two commissioners of the new French territory. However, the need to fund Napoleon’s ongoing war in Europe led him to sell the territory to the United States. Therefore, despite the exceptional quality of Collot's cartography, his work became politically uncomfortable following the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. It was suppressed for over twenty years until finally published in 1826 by the Parisian firm of Arthus Bertrand that specialized in works on travel and exploration.To support the price of Collot's book, Bertrand destroyed all but 300 copies of the French edition and 100 of the English editions. While individual prints and maps come appear in the market from time to time, complete atlases are quite rare.
CONDITION
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