Letter to the Seigneury of Geneva (February 19th, 1541)

In the context of the Diet of Regensburg, which was an important theological debate between catholics and protestants, John Calvin, after being called by William Farel to return to Geneva, explains the reasons of his belated arrival and reiterates his engagement with the church.

Below you will find four versions of this letter: the original manuscript, the 1854 edition by Jules Bonnet, a modern French version and a Spanish translation that you can browse and compare. Just click on the buttons to open (or close) the drawers or change the sections’ order. Here is a link to the English translation made by the Gutenberg Project in 2014.

Manuscript
Facsimiles 33-35

Library record (extract)

Ms. fr. 401
Title : Volume I : 1530-1559
Date(s) : 1530-1559
Material importance and format : 1 volume of 132 leaves
Presentation of the contents : f. 17-17bis : Letter of John Calvin to the syndicates and Council of Geneva - Strasbourg, February 19, 1541 (original, autograph subscription)
Sender(s) : Calvin, John
Community(ies) : Council of Geneva
Identifier : ark:/17786/vta24f0a6ce0f83c4c8

Provenance :

Jules Bonnet’s edition
Facsimiles 71-73

Library record

Title :  Lettres de John Calvin : lettres françaises. T. 1 / recueillies pour la première fois et publ. d'après les ms. originaux par Jules Bonnet
Author  :  Calvin, John (1509-1564). Author of the text
Publisher  :  (Paris)
Date of edition :  1854
Contributor  :  Bonnet, Jules (1820-1892). Scientific editor
Type :  printed monograph
Language  :  French
Format :  2 volumes (XXXIX-451-600 p.): facsimile; in-octavo
Description :  Correspondence
Rights  :  Searchable online
Identifier :  ark:/12148/bpt6k209248w
Source  :  Bibliothèque nationale de France
Provenance :  Bibliothèque nationale de France
Date of online publication  :  15/10/2007
Modernized version
Spanish translation