"A SUCCESS SUCH AS NO HISTORICAL WORK IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE HAS HAD SINCE GIBBON"

MACAULAY, Thomas Babington. The History of England from the Accession of James the Second. London: Longmans, Green, Reader, & Dyer, 1871. Two volumes. Octavo, 20th-century full brown tree calf, raised bands, elaborately gilt-decorated spines, red and blue morocco spine labels, marbled endpapers and edges. $1500.

Later edition of Macaulay's enormously influential history, handsomely bound by Riviere.

"The first historical work deliberately designed to outsell the best-selling novel of the day, Macaulay's book [The History of England] immediately fulfilled its author's aspiration. His colourful style and stirring power of description secured for the History a success such as no historical work in the English language has had since Gibbon… the numerous reprints and translations into almost every literary language have perpetuated Macaulay's ideas almost to this day… The hero of the book is William III, and its aim the justification of the 'Glorious Revolution' which, by the mid-nineteenth century had, in Macaulay's opinion, produced 'the most enlightened generation of the most enlightened people that ever existed'" (PMM 328). First published in 1848.

Infrequent mild foxing to text; expert restoration to joints and beautiful tree-calf boards.