Skip to Main Content
Go to Penn Libraries homepage   Go to Guides homepage

French Histories: Overview

This guide highlights the many primary source sets available from the University of Pennsylvania Libraries supporting the study of French history

Primary Source Documents

Historical accounts, written in vernacular French, from the 13th to 17th centuries.

40 volumes

A collection of interesting primary source excerpts.

27 volumes

Primary source accounts and memoirs from France's history.

14 volumes

Published on order of the King, includes: 1. Chronique des ducs de Normandie, 2. Les Familles d'outre-mer de du Cange , 3. Histoire de la croisade, 4. Histoire de la guerre de Navarre en 1276 et 1277, 5. Chronique de Bertrand du Guesolin 6. missing, 7. Chroniques d'Amadi et de Strambaldi.

7 volumes

Primary source documents from the Archives du Cogner.

11 volumes

Historical accounts collected and saved in the Saint-Denis Church.

6 volumes

Primary source documents on the southeastern city of Royan and the Tour de Cordouan, the oldest lighthouse in France.

3 volumes

Primary source documents of Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy during the Hundred Years' War.

3 volumes

Primary source documents written by or about Renaissance intellectuals of Forez.

1 volume

French Histories

Image: Napoleon Crossing the Alps

Courtesy of the Library of Congress

Letters and Journal Entries

Letters, notes and journal entries of Charles de Gaulle.

14 volumes

Letters and correspondences of Napoleon I, compiled on order of Napoleon III.

22 volumes

Journal of a villager during the period of the French Revolution.

1 volume

Journal of a bourgeoisie Marseillois during the time of Louis XII and Francois I. The second volume is in old French, and the first volume is in modern French.

2 volumes

Information

A list of primary source documents and guides to various archives and records on French history. All books are in French.

Record and Archive Guides

Review of historic anthologies and books published around 1881.

3 volumes

Inventory of all records on the history of France c. 1891 in the French archives.

2 volumes

List of researchers and specialists covering the years 1953-1968.

8 volumes

List of sources for multiple historic topics, starting in the 16th century and ending in the 18th century.

27 volumes

Penn Libraries Home Franklin Home
(215) 898-7555