The History of the Reformation of the Church of England by Gilbert Burnet: The First Part of the Progress made in it during the Reign of King Henry VIII; The Second Part of the Progress made in it till the Settlement of it in the beginning of Queen Elizabeth I's Reign; The Third Part Being a Supplement to the Two Volumes formerly publish'd. Volumes 1&2 published by T.H. for Richard Chiswell in London in 1681 and 1683, respectively, with the third volume printed for J. Churchill in London in 1715.
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A beautiful very early set of Gilbert Burnet's (1643-1715) most important work on the history of the reformation of the Church of England, here beautifully bound in full panelled calf. This is a luxurious set indeed in folio format with stunning engraved portraits throughout the volumes and with distinguished provenance. Another noteworthy element is early portraits of King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I on the beautiful engraved title pages.
In the mid-1670s, a French translation of Nicholas Sanders' De origine et progressu schismatis Anglicani libri tres (1585) appeared. Sanders attacked the English Reformation as a political act carried on by a corrupt king. Several of Burnet's friends wished him to publish a rebuttal of the work, so in 1679 his first volume of The History of the Reformation of the Church of England was published. This covered the reign of Henry VIII; the second volume (1681) covered the reign of Elizabeth and the Elizabethan Religious Settlement; the third volume (1715) consisted of corrections and additional material.
His literary reputation was greatly enhanced by this publication - the British parliament voted thanks for Burnet after the publication of the first volume, and in 1680 the University of Oxford awarded Burnet the degree of Doctor of Divinity on the advice of William Sancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury. For over a century this was the standard reference work in the field, although Catholics disputed some of its content.
Here we have the set in mixed edition form with the second editions of the first and second volumes and first edition of the third volume as more typically found.
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These early editions of Gilbert Burnet's The History of the Reformation of the Church of England were all published in London:
1679: first edition of Volume 1
1681: second edition of Volume 1
1681: first edition of Volume 2
1683: second edition of Volume 2
1715: first edition of Volume 3
1715: fourth edition of Volume 1
1715: fourth edition of Volume 2
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Provenance:
Armorial bookplate of Christopher Wilson of Abbot Hall with the motto "Providentia et Labore". Wilson was a childhood friend of William Wordsworth, influential businessman and political activist. He was in the cotton spinning trade as well as the gunpowder trade up until the Slave Trade Act of 1807. He then became senior partner at a large bank. Abbot Hall, now an art gallery/museum, is a beautiful Grade I listed building built in 1759 housing one of the most important collections of George Romney's paintings, as well as art from De Wint, J.M.W. Turner, Cozens, John Ruskin, LS Lowry, etc. This bookplate is probably circa 1830-1840.
This set is very similar to one which sold at Dominic Winter Auctioneers 6th April 2022 lot 132, realising £900 (GBP) which is £1,080 including buyer's premium.
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Size: 215 x 322 x 60 mm (approx., each)
Condition: Very Good (VG+)
[11ff, 377pp, 368pp, 2ff]; [15ff, 421pp, 4ff, 416pp, 2ff]; [20ff, 332pp, 6ff, 426pp, 5ff]
Collated as complete through the text block of each volume with the abundant engraved portrait plates, lacks two blanks through the three volumes else complete. Full panelled calf folio bindings with the third volume either with a rebacked spine or just bound in a slightly different manner - most likely the latter given the slight size difference and different positioning of the raised bands. The three volumes nevertheless are well matched and show well on the shelf. A little bit of rubbing and wear to the extremities with some chipping/minor loss to the leather at the head and foot of each spine and gilt loss to the first two vols. Minor shelf wear. Minor scuffs to boards but generally very good. Rubbing to joints, a little more prominently to the front of the third volume, but with all boards securely attached. The bindings are firm and without shelf lean. Page edges dulled at the tops as typical. Bookplate to front pastedown of each volume as discussed under provenance, above. Very clean through the text blocks with a very small amount of wormholing to the lower gutter of the second volume not affecting any text - this only affects as far as about the end of the contents leaves. Some pencil writing to front pastedown of volume 1 (only) including an indication that this was held at the University of Oxford at some time.
[Wing B5798A].
