First edition: a very scarce publication, by a French naval officer who sailed with the D'Entrecasteaux expedition in the 1790s.

First edition: a very scarce publication, by a French naval officer who sailed with the D'Entrecasteaux expedition in the 1790s.

Admiral Charles Baudin played a role in the history of both Texas and Mexico: in 1838 he was sent by the government of King Louis Philippe in command of a blockading squadron to Mexico, 'accompanied by the king's third son, Prince Joinville. During the siege, known in Mexican history as the "Pastry War," all of the French provisions (including drinking water) were shipped from Havana.

'President Mirabeau B. Lamar sent Col. Barnard E. Bee to Veracruz to obtain Mexican recognition of Texas independence, but the Mexicans refused to see Bee, who consulted with Baudin and Joinville. Through the blockade of Veracruz, by engaging the military and depriving Mexico of import duties, its principal source of revenue, France impeded Mexico's attempts to reconquer its rebellious northeastern province, Texas, and avenge the Mexican defeat at the battle of San Jacinto. When negotiations failed to satisfy France's complaints, Baudin's squadron leveled the supposedly impregnable citadel of San Juan de Ullóa on November 27, 1838, earning Baudin international fame as the "hero of San Juan de Ullóa." During the bombardment of the citadel, Baudin's forces further disabled the Mexican army by capturing Gen. Mariano Arista (a future president) and wounding Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna, whose leg had to be amputated. The Duke of Wellington proclaimed this victory to be the only known instance in history of a regularly fortified citadel's being taken solely by naval force. Accounts vary regarding the ultimate success of the mission, however, because Mexico expelled the French soon after Baudin's departure for Texas, where he became an honorary Galvestonian in May 1839…

'The role of Baudin in Texas history has been compared to that of the Marquis de Lafayette in the American Revolution, because Baudin and Lafayette personified France's aid to the young republics during their struggles for independence. After a distinguished career Baudin was promoted to admiral by Napoleon III only days before his death, on June 7, 1854.' (The Handbook of Texas, online version).