René Benjamin, the 20th-century Balzac scholar

October 6th, 2026 at 2:00 PM
37510 Savonnières - France

General informations
Sale location
Fees and conditions
Exposures

Featured lots by the auctions House:

several old black and white photographs of people in a room
a lot of papers that have been written on them
a lot of old photos of a man in a bed
an old handwritten letter from a french soldier to a french soldier
a pile of old papers with writing on them
three papers with handwriting on them sitting on top of each other
several old black and white photos of men in suits and ties
a pile of old papers with handwriting on them
three old letters are sitting next to each other on a white surface
two old black and white photos of a man and a woman
Terms of sale
Rouillac Auctions is offering for auction the complete archives of René Benjamin (1885–1948), winner of the 1915 Prix Goncourt and a member of the Académie Goncourt, comprising over 10,000 items of all kinds: autograph manuscripts, unpublished notebooks, correspondence, photographs, original publications with dedications, posters and printer’s proofs. The sale, covering the entire span of an extraordinary literary and intellectual life, will take place at the Manoir du Plessis in Savonnières, the very home where Benjamin lived and wrote for nearly thirty years. BROWSE THE AUCTION CATALOGUE: https://www.calameo.com/read/002897296839511f517b2 PUBLIC VIEWING Sunday 4 October from 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm Monday 5 October from 10.00 am to 12.00 pm and from 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm Tuesday 6 October from 10.00 am to 12.00 pm LECTURE René Benjamin within these walls Sunday 4 October at 3.30 pm CONTACT Email: [email protected] Tel: 02 54 80 24 24 SALES COMMISSION 24% incl. VAT
See original version (French)
Payment terms:
Fees payable by the buyer: 24% including VAT, regardless of the lot. Additional sales fees via the live online auction: 1.8% including VAT.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.

Sale commission: 24 % incl. taxes for voluntary sales

Nature of the sale
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
Contact:
ROUILLAC
02 47 61 22 22
[email protected]
Operator: ROUILLAC

Sale commission: 24 % incl. taxes for voluntary sales

Internet fees: 1.5% excluding VAT of the hammer price for judicial sales, 1.5% excluding VAT for voluntary sales or €60 excluding VAT per vehicle. No additional fees will be applied on charity auction lots.

Adjudication: As the Live auction report is not binding, the winning bids are confirmed after the sale by the auctioneer.

Payment terms:
Fees payable by the buyer: 24% including VAT, regardless of the lot. Additional sales fees via the live online auction: 1.8% including VAT.
See original version (French)

Terms of sale: Download the auctioneer's conditions of sale

Legal notice for voluntary sales: ROUILLAC Declaration date or accreditation number: 2002-189 Intra-Community VAT: FR63442092649

Exposures:

Le Plessis, 37510 Savonnières, France

October 4th, 2026 from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
October 5th, 2026 from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
October 5th, 2026 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM
October 6th, 2026 from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Lot no. 1
Ernest Benjamin (1854–1901), writer, member of the Société d…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 2
Octave Mirbeau (1848–1917), writer and playwright, and Sacha…
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 3
Classical works of French literature, 18th to 20th centuries
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 4
René Benjamin, an aspiring writer: his formative years, 1894…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 5
René Benjamin: his early literary publications and theatrica…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 6
Elémir Bourges (1852–1925), Symbolist and Decadent writer, m…
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 7
René Benjamin, soldier, writer and lecturer, 1914–1919
Val.: €3,000 - €6,000
Lot no. 8
Benjamin Rabier (1864–1939), illustrator, animal artist and …
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 9
Correspondence from soldiers and writers called up for milit…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 10
René Benjamin, *Gaspard*, winner of the 1915 Prix Goncourt
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 11
Jean Lefort (1875–1954), painter and illustrator
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 12
Gaspard, illustrated by Jean Lefort, artist’s copy, 1917
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 13
Gaspard, special edition for the Société des bibliophiles ‘L…
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 14
Berthold Mahn (1881–1975), painter, draughtsman and illustra…
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 15
René Benjamin, writer and observer of the Great War
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 16
Gaspard, Sous le Ciel de France, and Un pauvre village de Fr…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 17
A Poor Village in France, illustrated by Jean Perrier, 1918
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 18
Guy Arnoux (1886–1951), the ‘Imagier de France’, and his bro…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 19
Guy Arnoux (1886–1951), draughtsman and illustrator
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 20
Guy Arnoux (1886–1951), poster artist
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 21
Guy Arnoux (1886–1951), propaganda illustrator
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 22
Jacques-Roger Simon (1875–1965), painter and engraver
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 23
Maurice Maréchal (1882–1942), journalist, editor of *Le Cana…
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 24
Philippe Pétain, Major General
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 25
Newspapers and publications by First World War soldiers, 191…
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 26
Publications on the 1914–1918 War
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 27
Personal archives, comprising private, literary, theatrical …
Val.: €3,000 - €6,000
Lot no. 28
René Benjamin’s literary publications between 1919 and 1929
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 29
Passive correspondence and notes by René Benjamin, 1919–1929
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 30
René Benjamin’s Balzacian and Touraine-inspired world: admir…
Val.: €3,000 - €6,000
Lot no. 31
Georges Courteline (1858–1929), novelist and playwright
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 32
Bernard Grasset (1881–1955), the publisher and writer
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 33
Bernard Grasset (1881–1955), the publisher and writer
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 34
Maurice Barrès (1862–1923), writer and leading figure of Fre…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 35
Maurice Barrès’s *Le Soliloque*, bibliophile’s copies
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 36
Maurice Barrès (1862–1923), writer
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 37
Georges Goursat, known as Sem (1863–1934), illustrator, post…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 38
Paul Bourget (1852–1935), writer and essayist, member of the…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 39
René Benjamin and the art of public speaking: a passionate a…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 40
Jean Tenant (1885–1986), writer, poet and literary critic, a…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 41
The Robertsau Academy and the Alsatian unease, 1926
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 42
Jérôme and Jean Tharaud (1874–1953)/(1877–1952), the twin wr…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 43
Jérôme and Jean Tharaud, writers
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 44
René Benjamin’s theatrical vocation: from observation to the…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 45
Jacques Copeau (1888–1949), critic, director and theatre man…
Val.: €3,000 - €6,000
Lot no. 46
André Antoine (1858–1943), actor, director, theatre manager,…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 47
René Benjamin: The World of Theatre and Cinema
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 48
Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929) and the Léon Daudet affair, 1…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 49
Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929), writer
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 50
Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929), *The Twilight of a Tiger*, 1…
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 51
Joseph Van Oost (1877–1939), missionary, ethnomusicologist a…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 52
René Benjamin and the Glozel archaeological affair, 1928
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 53
Sibylle Aimée Marie-Antoinette Gabrielle Riquetti de Mirabea…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 54
Colette (1873–1954), writer
Val.: €30 - €60
Lot no. 55
Paul Morand (1888–1976), writer
Val.: €40 - €80
Lot no. 56
Pierre de Ronsard
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 57
France by Paul Fort, 1927
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 58
Georges Suarez (1890–1944), writer, essayist and journalist
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 59
Anna de Brancovan, Countess of Noailles (1876–1933), poet an…
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 60
Anna de Brancovan, Countess of Noailles (1876–1933), pastel …
Val.: €1,000 - €1,500
Lot no. 61
René Benjamin, admirer, confidant and biographer of the poet…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 62
Under the Blossoming Gaze of Madame de Noailles, a first cop…
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 63
Under the Blossoming Gaze of Madame de Noailles, a high-qual…
Val.: €600 - €800
Lot no. 64
Under the Blossoming Gaze of Madame de Noailles, bound by Re…
Val.: €400 - €600
Lot no. 65
Anna de Noailles, 6 volumes bound by Grégoire Levitzky
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 66
Anna, Countess of Noailles, poet
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 67
Paul Géraldy (1885–1983), poet and playwright
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 68
George Bonnamour (1866–1954), writer and journalist
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 69
Henri Duvernois (1875–1937), writer, screenwriter and playwr…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 70
Jacques Boutelleau, known as Jacques Chardonne (1884–1966), …
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 71
Roland Dorgelès (1885–1973), writer and member of the Académ…
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 72
Antoine de Lévis-Mirepoix (1884–1981), novelist, historian a…
Val.: €80 - €120
Lot no. 73
Pierre-Louis Duchartre and René Saulnier
Val.: €80 - €120
Lot no. 74
Count Henri de Vibraye [Hunting]
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 75
René Benjamin’s literary publications between 1930 and 1939
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 76
Passive correspondence and notes by René Benjamin, 1930–1939
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 77
Drawings and caricatures of René Benjamin
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 78
Albert I, King of the Belgians (1875–1934)
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 79
Marie Amélie d’Orléans, Princess of France and Queen of Port…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 80
House of Orléans, House of France
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 81
Maxime Weygand (1867–1965), general and minister, and Hubert…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 82
Paul Iribé (1883–1935), decorative artist, draughtsman and i…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 83
André Michelin (1853–1931), engineer and industrialist
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 84
André Citroën (1878–1935), pioneer of the French motor indus…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 85
Lily Converse (1876–1961), painter and engraver
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 86
Henry Bordeaux (1870–1963), lawyer, novelist and essayist, m…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 87
The Margueritte family: men and women of letters
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 88
Haydée Magnus Level (1903–1991), woman of letters and hostes…
Val.: €100 - €150
Lot no. 89
Georges Bernanos (1888–1948), writer
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 90
Charles Maurras: from his arrest to his death
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 91
Charles Maurras, Son of the Sea, 1931–1932
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 92
Charles Maurras, that Son of the Sea, a top-quality copy
Val.: €400 - €600
Lot no. 93
Charles Maurras (1868–1952), member of the Académie Français…
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 94
Charles Maurras (1868–1952), writer and poet
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 95
Charles Maurras (1868–1952), writer and poet
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 96
Publications on Charles Maurras
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 97
Pierre Varillon (1897–1960), writer, journalist and royalist…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 98
Pierre Varillon (1897–1960), writer and journalist
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 99
Léon Daudet (1867–1942) and René Benjamin: a loyal and liter…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 100
Julia Allard-Daudet (1844–1940) and Lucien Daudet (1878–1946…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 101
Léon Daudet (1867–1942), writer and journalist
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 102
Jacques Bainville (1879–1936), journalist, historian and mem…
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 103
Georges Gaudy (1895–1987), writer, journalist, lecturer and …
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 104
Literature of the nationalist and monarchist right
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 105
Joachim Carvallo (1869–1936) and the restoration of Villandr…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 106
Villandry and the Fate of the Carvallo Family as Seen by Ren…
Val.: €2,000 - €4,000
Lot no. 107
Sacha Guitry (1885–1957), playwright and actor
Val.: €2,000 - €4,000
Lot no. 108
Sacha Guitry (1885–1957) and René Benjamin (1885–1948): a de…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,000
Lot no. 109
Sacha Guitry, King of the Theatre: a top-quality first editi…
Val.: €300 - €500
Lot no. 110
Sacha Guitry (1885–1957)
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 111
Sacha Guitry (1885–1957)
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 112
Albert Willemetz (1887–1964), librettist, lyricist and scree…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 113
Albert Willemetz and Milivoï Uzelac
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 114
Dante Alighieri and Edy Legrand
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 115
Jean-Jacques Pennès, known as Jean Sennep (1894–1982)
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 116
Rudyard Kipling and others
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 117
Georges Bozonnat (1904–1960), Swiss man of letters and journ…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 118
René Benjamin’s travels in the Balkans, 1933–1938
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 119
Il Duce Benito Mussolini and René Benjamin the writer, 1935–…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 120
Mussolini and His People
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 121
Benito Mussolini, Duce
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 122
Benito Mussolini and Fascist Italy
Val.: €50 - €100
Lot no. 123
René Benjamin, a tour of Europe (Italy, Germany, Spain), the…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 124
René Benjamin in the Middle East (Lebanon, Egypt, Syria), 19…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 125
René Benjamin and painters and illustrators
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 126
Fernand Maillaud (1862–1948), painter and illustrator from t…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 127
Fernand Maillaud (1862–1948)
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 128
Fernand Maillaud (1862–1948)
Val.: €600 - €800
Lot no. 129
Fernand Maillaud (1862–1948)
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 130
Emmanuel Fougerat (1869–1958), Breton painter and museum cur…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 131
René Morère (1907–1942), painter, the man from Castillon in …
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 132
Louis Icart (1888–1950), painter, engraver and illustrator
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 133
The Académie Goncourt and René Benjamin, 1938–1948
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 134
Joseph-Henri Rosny the Elder (1856–1940), writer and Preside…
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 135
J.-H. Rosny Jeune (1859–1948), writer, President of the Acad…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 136
Francis Carco (1886–1958), writer, poet and member of the Ac…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 137
Jean de la Varende (1887–1959), writer
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 138
Abel Bonnard (1883–1968), writer, poet, member of the Académ…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 139
Abel Bonnard (1883–1968), writer and poet, member of the Aca…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 140
Novels and essays
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 141
Poetry, theatre and music
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 142
René Benjamin’s personal archives, 1940–1948
Val.: €3,000 - €6,000
Lot no. 143
Correspondence received by René Benjamin, 1940–1948
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 144
Jean Quirin (1913–1941), who served as a pilot in the 62nd G…
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 145
Baroud 40: The French Army’s Retreat in May–June 1940
Val.: €30 - €60
Lot no. 146
A Sketch of a Portrait of Marshal Pétain
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 147
Philippe Pétain (1856–1951), known as Marshal Pétain, Head o…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 148
Portraits of Marshal Philippe Pétain
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 149
Marshal Pétain’s visit to Paris, 26 April 1944
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 150
Paris and Marshal Pétain
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 151
La France Nouvelle, 1940–1943
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 152
The Imagery of Marshal Pétain, 1941–1942
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 153
Official propaganda of the Vichy regime and the National Rev…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 154
René Benjamin’s literary publications between 1940 and 1945
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 155
Pierre Drieu la Rochelle (1893–1945), novelist, essayist and…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 156
René Benjamin, Marshal Pétain’s speechwriter
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 157
Bernard Ménétrel (1906–1947), private physician and confidan…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 158
The office of Marshal Pétain and the Vichy propagandists
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 159
Henri Massis (1886–1970), literary critic and nationalist es…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 160
Jean Chevrier, known as Herbert (1908–2004), theatre directo…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 161
Jacques Visseaux (1872–1952), a leading industrialist from L…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 162
Robert Brasillach (1909–1945)
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 163
Francisque Girard, a craftsman from the Bresse region, an ac…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 164
The Cité Saint-Bernard in Paris: an unfinished project for t…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 165
Auguste Lumière (1862–1954), engineer, industrialist, biolog…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 166
Louis Thomas (1885–1962), writer, poet, journalist and essay…
Val.: €200 - €400
Lot no. 167
Jean-Loup Benjamin (1917–1945, Died for France), the tragic …
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 168
Jean-Loup Benjamin (1917–1945, Died for France), *L’Enfant t…
Val.: €500 - €800
Lot no. 169
Jacques Belin (1910–1974), official photographer of the Fren…
Val.: €1,500 - €2,500
Lot no. 170
Marguerite Deville Chabrol (1881–1959), woman of letters and…
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 171
Henri Poulain (1912–1987), journalist and writer
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 172
The arrest and internment of René Benjamin, and his trials, …
Val.: €2,000 - €4,000
Lot no. 173
Aristide Cormier (1902–1975), canon and spiritual director t…
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 174
François Mauriac (1885–1970), writer, member of the Académie…
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 175
Georges Duhamel (1884–1966), doctor, writer and poet
Val.: €400 - €800
Lot no. 176
René Benjamin’s literary publications between 1946 and 1949
Val.: €800 - €1,200
Lot no. 177
Léon Basile Guerdan (1886–1949), Armenian writer
Val.: €300 - €600
Lot no. 178
Roland Engerand (1892–1951), a writer and poet who made Tour…
Val.: €100 - €200
Lot no. 179
The final moments of René Benjamin: literary and artistic tr…
Val.: €1,000 - €2,000
Lot no. 180
Novels and plays
Val.: €150 - €300
Lot no. 181
Essays, travelogues and miscellaneous works
Val.: €150 - €300