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The Book of Voltaire, a History of France in the 18th Century
The book was condemned, and the procureur general had the book burned in front of the hall of justice. Voltaire wrote to a friend, well, we have made progress. In france. They used to burn the author, now they merely burn the book. There was a warrant for his arrest that was met only by his accepting a banishment from paris. For voltaire, he was banned from the centre of french intellectual life. He also added, however, that the diabolical, blasphemous, abominable, philosophical letters are selling quite well. The work went through five editions in 17 34 and five more editions in the next five years.