1829 The Works of Sir Walter Ralegh

Description

First Edition, Leather Binding, Signed Binding

The first edition of this collected works of Sir Walter Raleigh. 

Complete in eight volumes.

Bound by Riviere.

Raleigh was an important statesman, soldier, spy, and explorer, leading part of the English colonisation of North America.

Volume I, 'The Life of Sir Walter Raleigh', by Oldys and Birch.

Volumes II, III, IV, V, VI, and VII all containing 'The History of the World'.

Volume VIII containing 'Miscellaneous Works, 

The majority of this set contains Raleigh's important 'History of the World', an early exploration of the ancient world, with a emphasis on geography. He begins by discussing Biblical history, then moves on to discuss the histories of Greece and Rome. Raleigh's is a moral history, exploring the misdeeds of English Kings, most especially Henry VIII. Raleigh wrote this work whilst imprisoned in the Tower of London, after being charged with treason for his involvement in the Main Plot against King James I. Though King James tried to suppress 'History', it was immensely popular and oft-reprinted. Raleigh intended the work to be a multi-volume endeavour, however he was executed in 1618 before he was able to make progress on the other volumes.

From the library of W. A. Foyle at Beeleigh Abbey, with his morocco bookplate to the front paste downs. William Foyle was the co-founder of Foyles bookshop, founding the leading bookshop in 1903 alongside his brother. He purchased Beeleigh Abbey during the Second World War, an impressive twelfth century monastery in Essex, which became home to his library, one the largest private libraries in England.