Augustus Anglicus – 1686 | Royalist View of the Life of King Charles II | First Edition

Augustus Anglicus, a compendious view of the life and reign of that immortal and glorious monarch, Charles II is an anonymously written account of the life and reign of Charles II. Following the king’s death, this 1686 book was intended to idealize Charles, the Stuart dynasty, and the Church of England. Though, like many Restoration-era treatises, anonymous publishing was not uncommon due to the controversial nature of the king’s reign.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Augustus Anglicus, a compendious view of the life and reign of that immortal and glorious monarch, Charles II
• Author(s): Anonymous
• Illustrator(s):
• Contributor(s):
• Publisher: London, printed for Samuel Holford
• Edition: First edition, 1686
• Format: (12mo), single volume
• Binding: Contemporary leather binding, corners and edges reinforced
• Size:  5.75 in x 3.5 in (14.6 cm x 8.9 cm)
• Collation: [22], 192 pp
• Illustrations:
• Contents Include:
  • Panegyrical life of Charles II
  • Royalist memorial text
• Provenance: signed with explanation – “Poor William Smith’s Book”
• Reference(s): Wing A 4215

Condition:

Very Good. Contemporary leather binding with reinforced corners and edges. Text block tight and secure. Pages with mild age toning consistent with the period, but clean and legible.

Why Collect This?

• First edition of a 1686 Stuart royalist biography
• Example of Restoration political literature

Item Number: #29253