Box Ten [series]:
Documents from 1739-1740.
Many documents pertain to the hostile relationship between France and England, largely acted out at sea and in the colonies. There is a considerable number of items from Barry, the Commissaire des Classes at Marseilles.
Documents directly related to war with England cover: the arming of English ships; how to defend coasts of France from English threat; English presence in America; English request for free navigation; naval orders. There are two British documents concerning corsair warfare with Spain.
Other documents include: instructions to officers from Maurepas; notes on galley construction; an instruction booklet on methods of sailing (with color diagrams); reports on maritime laws, navigation, movement of ships, armament and the arsenal, the crew of the Reales, ship names, pensions, the Bureau des Classes; a list of offences punishable by galleys; various requests.
Notable documents include: a twenty-one page journal kept by the French Jesuit, Vitry, on an expedition against Native Americans in Louisiana (contains a detailed account of Indian life); a significant study of French trade and its political function by Buthaud (a good articulation of the philosophy behind Maurepas' administrative policy); a study of French trade; printed rules for corsair warfare decreed by George III of England; a description of an invention; a description of the civil and military functions of Admiral; an illustrated booklet on maritime manoeuvres.