8vo. xlii, 324 pp., half-title, cloth backed boards, title gilt on spine, additions & corrections, from the library of Dr. GHA Juynboll, some foxing & browning, Librairie Orientale du Veuve Dondey-Dupré, Paris, first edition, 1836.

Synopsis

Extremely rare first edition on the invasion of France by the Arabs. Joseph-Toussaint Reinaud (1795-1867) studied Arabic with the help of Silvester de Sacy. He published several works on Islamic monuments and translated into French what the Arabs wrote on the Crusades. This work is a coalition of several studies written by French and Arab historians covering the Arab invasion of France during the 8th, 9th, and 10th centuries. The introduction explains the reasons behind the Arab conquest, while the text outlines the different waves of the Arab invasion, and their characteristics and influence. An analysis is also given to the Arab administration system of southern France, their agricultural efforts, their horses, social life and colonies. The last chapter discusses the influence of Arab invasion on French literature.