HUGO Victor Les Misérables.

Clouzot, 150; voir Vicaire, IV, 328 & Carteret, I, 421 (both for the Paris edition).

The true first edition, first issue, without mention of edition, printed in Brussels.

Copy printed on fine vellum paper.

First issue copy, no mention of edition.

Among bibliophiles, the question of the first edition of Les Misérables is still debated. Indeed, the Paris and Brussels editions were initially intended to be published simultaneously. However, they differ in their preparatory stages and in the date of their release.

It was indeed to Lacroix that Victor Hugo sent all his corrections, as his correspondence amply attests. Thus, in a letter addressed to the publisher on 19 January 1862, Hugo « envoie […] les cinq bon à tirer des cinq feuilles 6, 7, 8, 10 et 11. » and « recommande instamment les corrections ».In the same letter, he also emphasises « M. P. Meurice attend toujours. Il me semble qu’il serait grand temps de commencer l’édition de Paris » (Hugo, Victor, Correspondance, Albin-Michel, Paris, 1947. p.369), confirming Belgium’s primacy in the actual publishing process of the work.

Furthermore, it was also with Lacroix that he discussed the physicality of the volumes of Les Misérables. In a letter dated 3 February, the idea of splitting the first two volumes into three was raised. Hugo opposed the idea and made his decision the very next day: « Faites deux volumes et non trois. » (Hugo, Correspondance, 1947. pp.370-372).

Lacroix is therefore the true publisher of Les Misérables. He even had the following inscription added opposite the title pages of the Parisian volumes: « éditeur : Lacroix et Verboeckhoven & C^ie ». 

It also appears that he distributed Les Misérables before Paris. Lacroix is responsible for shipping the volumes around the world. He informs Hugo on 30 March that « tout est tiré, tout était broché et les expéditions pour l’étranger en partie faites ». Lacroix then distributed the first two volumes, Fantine, the very next day. Pagnerre, who had planned to distribute Les Misérables on 7 April, brought the release forward to the 3rd after learning that Paul Siraudin had obtained a copy in Belgium on 31 March.

Beyond the debatable Belgian precedence, Hugo truly appreciated the Brussels printing, which became a model for his future novels. A few years later, he inscribed on his copy of Les Travailleurs de la Mer: « Depuis que j’ai mm. Lacroix, Verboëkhoven et Cie pour éditeurs, c’est toujours l’édition belge princeps qui doit servir de type aux éditions futures. V. H » (Maison de Victore Hugo, côte 9819.1).

“Ouvrage capital et universellement estimé. Un des plus colossaux succès de librairie, c’est un des livres qui s’est le plus vendu… Ce roman parut le même jour à Paris, à Bruxelles, à Leipzig, à Londres, à Milan, à Madrid, à Rotterdam, à Varsovie, à Pesthe et à Rio de Janeiro” (Carteret).

The edition of Les Misérables is divided into five main parts, each consisting of two volumes, namely: Fantine (1-2), Cosette (3-4), Marius (5-6), L’Idylle rue Plumet (7-8), and Jean Valjean (9-10). Exceptionally, in addition to the title, the bookbinder has also gilded the titles of each part and their respective books on the spine of the bindings.

Copies preserved in beautiful contemporary bindings are rare.

A very fine copy, very fresh with wide margins, and exceptional paper quality.