Wilkes, John / Bingley, William.

The North Briton – Revised and Corrected by the Author. Illustrated with Explanatory Notes and A Copious Index of Names and Characters. In Two Volumes (Revised Edition of Volumes I and II – Containing: No. 1 – No.45 – Published London, 1766) / [Plus: The North Briton – Volumes III – Printed for E. Sumpter, London and Dublin, 1763 (Containing No.46 from May 28, 1763 – No.68 on October 27th, 1763) & The North Briton – Volume IV – Printed for W[illiam] Bingley, London and Dublin, 1769 (No.46 from November the 12th, 1763 – No. 66 (or XX (20) of the Continuation) from September 17, 1768].

Mixed Editions bound uniformly [First Edition and Corrected Editions together]. Four Volumes (Bound in Three). London and Dublin, E.Sumpter & Anonymously, 1763 – 1769 Octavo (10 cm x 16,5 cm). Pagination: Volume I and II: 269, [5] pages including Index with two title-pages but continued pagination / Volume III: 216 pages / Volume IV: 288 pages. Hardcover / Original 18th century leather with gilt numbering on spine and new spine-labels , created to style of the 18th-century. Excellent condition with some minor signs of wear only. From the library of Edward Supple, [most likely the Edward Supple from Supple’s Court, Castlemartyr, County Cork], with his name to titlepages. A very rare set !

Including the North Briton issue number 45 (23 April 1763) , in which publisher John Wilkes “criticized a royal speech in which King George III praised the Treaty of Paris ending the Seven Years’ War. Wilkes was charged with libel (accusing the King of lying), and imprisoned for a short time in the Tower of London. Wilkes challenged the warrant for his arrest and seizure of his paper, eventually winning the case. His courtroom speeches started the “Wilkes and Liberty!” cry, popular slogan for freedom of speech and resistance to power. Later that year, Wilkes reprinted the issue, which was again seized by the government. Before it could be burned, an assembled crowd rescued the text, and the ensuing events caused Wilkes to flee across the English Channel to France, and be eventually imprisoned again. In 1764, the British House of Commons declared Wilkes the author of number 45. Nonetheless, by the time Wilkes was released from prison in 1770, “45” was still a popular icon not only of Wilkes, but of freedom of speech in general”. (Wikipedia)

″The North Briton” was a radical newspaper published in 18th-century London. The North Briton also served as the pseudonym of the newspaper’s author, used in advertisements, letters to other publications, and handbills.
Although written anonymously, “The North Briton” is closely associated with the name of John Wilkes. The newspaper is chiefly famous for issue number 45, the forty or so court cases spawned by that issue, and for the genesis of “45” as a popular slogan of liberty in the latter part of the 18th century. The paper was also known for its virulently anti-Scottish sentiment. Issues number 1 (5 June 1762) to number 44 (2 April 1763) were published on consecutive Saturdays.
The newspaper was begun in response to “The Briton”, a pro-government paper started by Tobias Smollett. Only eight days after that newspaper began publication, the first issue of “The North Briton” came out. It then came out weekly until the resignation of the Bute government. (Wikipedia)

• Keywords: 18th Century – Irish Country House Library · 18th Century – Rare · 18th century Freedom of Speech – Case · Anti-Scottish Sentiment · Bute · Catalogue Irish History Two – Origins of Irish Identity · Catalogue One – History of Law · Edward Supple Library [Supple’s Court near Castlemartyr] · English History – Rare · English History in the 18th century · Freedom of Speech · Gift Ideas Rare · History of Bute (Scotland) · Irish History – Rare · Law – Rare · Legal History · Periodicals Rare · Radical Newspaper – 18th Century · Scottish Enlightenment · Scottish History Rare · Scottish Legal History
• Language: English
• Inventory Number: 29830AB

EUR 2.400,-- 

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