Flandria Gallica Continens Castellnias Insulensem Duacensem Orchianensen Civitatem Dominiumq Tornacense

Title

Flandria Gallica Continens Castellnias Insulensem Duacensem Orchianensen Civitatem Dominiumq Tornacense

The map shows French Flanders with the area around Lille and Douai in France, as well as Tournai and Kortrijk in Belgium. In the bottom left is the title cartouche with seven heraldic representations, mostly held by putti.

ca. 1680

Artist

Waesberge - Pitt - Swart

After the death of Joannes Janssonius, the shop and publishing firm were continued by the heirs under the direction of Johannes van Waesbergen (c. 1616-1681), son-in-law of Joannes Janssonius. Van Waesbergen added the name of Janssonius to his own. Moses Pitt (1641-1697), a London based map publisher and bookseller, planned a 12-volume world atlas based on Janssonius’ Atlas Maior. He entered into a partnership with Johann van Waesbergen, one of the heirs of Johannes Janssonius, and Steven Swart. Both publishers had versions with their own imprint. Only four volumes were issued. The undertaking ruined him, and he was imprisoned for two years for debt. The maps are generally printed from reworked plates of Janssonius. The imprint of Janssonius van Waesbergen and Pitt is added and, to facilitate finding places with the index, the grid of parallels and meridians is added. In all probability, the maps were printed in Amsterdam and shipped to Oxford to be bound with the text.

Historical Description

Nord–Pas-de-Calais is a historically significant and strongly shaped border region. From medieval power struggles and industrial boom to war devastation and economic transformation, the region has undergone profound change and today is an important part of European infrastructure and culture. Originally, the area was part of Gaul and later came under Roman rule. In the Middle Ages, large parts belonged to the County of Flanders, then the Burgundian State, and eventually the Habsburg Empire. It was only in the 17th century that the territory finally came under French control (notably through the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659 and the Treaties of Nijmegen in 1678). Until 2015, Nord–Pas-de-Calais was an administrative region in the far north of France, bordering Belgium and facing Great Britain across the English Channel. Today, it forms part of the region Hauts-de-France.