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several old black and white photographs of people in a roomseveral old black and white photos of a group of people in front of a buildingtwo old black and white photos of a man and a womana lot of old books that are stacked togethersix handwritten letters from the first world war, including a letter from the first world warseveral old papers are stacked on top of each other on a white surfacean old letter with handwriting on it sitting on top of a piece of paperseveral old letters and envelopes are stacked together on a white surfaceseveral old letters are stacked on top of each other on a white surfacean old document with a picture of a canadian flag on itan old book with a lot of writing on it sitting next to a pile of papersthree envelopes and a note with a picture of an eagle on itan old newspaper advertises a concert in paris, franceseveral different types of medals are displayed on a white surfacean image of a poster advertising a conference in parisseveral old papers with writing on them sitting on top of each otheran old book with a drawing of a man on a skateboardan old postcard with a drawing of a woman laying on the beach
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7 - René Benjamin, soldier, writer and lecturer, 1914–1919
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Estimate €3,000 - €6,000
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Description
René Benjamin, soldier, writer and lecturer, 1914–1919 A substantial collection of correspondence, handwritten notebooks and photographs documenting René Benjamin’s life, from the general mobilisation in early August 1914 to the armistice in November 1918 FIND THE FULL AND DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THIS LOT IN OUR ONLINE AUCTION CATALOGUE 11 small in-12 notebooks containing handwritten notes in pencil by René Benjamin, numbered I to XI, covering the period from August 1914 to 1916 René Benjamin recorded his experiences, activities, feelings, observations and encounters almost daily throughout nearly two years of war Notebook No. I – 70 pp. – 4 August to 2 September 1914 On the flyleaf is written: ‘To be given to my mother in the event of an accident, as stipulated by the military authorities’ + his mother’s address in Paris Notebook No. II – 70 pp. – 2 September to 11 October 1914 Arrival at Saumur Hospital at midnight on 5 September meeting with Elisabeth Lecoy, a nurse Memories and encounters at the hospital, including Colson, a wounded soldier, who inspired him to create his fictional character: Gaspard Notebook No. III – 86 pp. – 12 October to 16 November 1914 At Saumur Hospital: already thinking about the character of Gaspard Jots down anecdotes, memories and scenes of life at the front Notebook No. IV – 52 pp. – 17 November to 19 December 1914 Transfer to Alençon: remarks overheard or made, including those by Colson; conversations amongst soldiers; use of slang Etc... A collection of over 420 letters exchanged between René Benjamin and Elisabeth Lecoy, his fiancée and later his wife Approx. 240 letters sent and received (approx. 770 pages) written by René Benjamin, and 180 letters from the front (approx. 840 pages) written by Elisabeth Lecoy, between 22 October 1914 and 4 November 1918 The preservation of this precious and rare collection of letters is invaluable for understanding the writer’s psyche and the genesis of a major work. René Benjamin’s correspondence with Elisabeth Lecoy transcends its status as a mere private exchange to become a literary work in its own right. It serves as the vessel in which the author’s three fundamental identities – lover, writer and witness to war – are fused into a single, indivisible whole. Elisabeth Lecoy’s role is by no means passive. By becoming his ideal reader and his ‘first collaborator’, she provides him with the intellectual and emotional space essential to this extraordinary outpouring of energy and creative literary inspiration. A veritable crucible in which a budding romantic passion is declared, an artistic vision is forged, and the trauma of the conflict is actively transformed into a coherent literary vision. Through the lines written throughout the war, we discover René Benjamin’s journey: his service as a convoy driver, his Goncourt Prize win, his private life (marriage and the birth of his eldest son), as well as his role as a speaker for the ‘L’Effort de la France’ committee and the continuation of his novel-writing (Le Major Pipe, Sous le ciel de la France, etc.) In September 1914, René Benjamin, wounded at the front, was transferred to the auxiliary hospital in Saumur, where Elisabeth Lecoy was working as a volunteer nurse. It was love at first sight. René Benjamin then began a regular and intense correspondence, using his writer’s pen to win over his sweetheart. In these letters, René Benjamin employed a strategy of seduction that deliberately sidestepped romantic clichés to build the relationship on intellectual equality, a shared sensibility and unvarnished emotional honesty. From his very first letter, dated 22 October 1914, Benjamin took care to distance himself from the conventions of youthful romance. He described the genre of the ‘love note’ as ‘comical’, ‘clandestine’, ‘silly or a little dodgy’. This precaution is not mere coquetry; it is a strategic rhetorical manoeuvre aimed at elevating the exchange above banality from the outset. He establishes a framework of seriousness and gravity. To legitimise this direct approach, he invokes their shared maturity: ‘We are no longer twenty – not even you. Age is a first freedom.’ This freedom grants him, in his view, the right to speak frankly, and her the right to hear him without seeing it as inappropriate. He implores her to remember what she knows of him as “the more serious, and also the more loyal” side, in order to lay the foundations for an unconventional courtship, based on trust and mutual respect. This approach immediately transforms what might have been a mere attempt at flirtation into a meeting of two minds. Etc... FIND THE FULL AND DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THIS LOT IN OUR ONLINE SALES CATALOGUE
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About the sale René Benjamin, the 20th-century Balzac scholar
Auction location
Auction time 10/06/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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