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Hibbert, Christopher : George III: A Personal History

Basic Books, New York, 1998

B&W Illustrations George III (1738-1820) of Britain was king during one of the most critical periods in the country's history. He succeeded his grandfather George II in 1760. During the following 60 years, several revolutions modified every aspect of British life, Fine in Fine DJ, 8vo

3rd Printing

HIBBERT**, CHRISTOPHER: : GEORGE III: A PERSONAL HISTORY

LONDON.VIKING/PENGUIN,1998.

ISBN 0670869414.

UK,thick 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.FINE/NFINE. No owner inscrptn,but price-clip to dw/dj.Bright, crisp,clean,glossy laminated,colour pictorial illustrated dw/dj; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no nicks or tears present.Minimal curling to laminate edges to both head+foot of spine/backstrip.Top+fore-edge minimally aged - as usual/normal - but bright and clean,with top edge having 4 publisher's colophons (blue ink,penguin outline in an oval) side by side; contents bright,tight and near pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners - an unread copy? Publisher's bright,clean,unblemished, original plain black cloth boards with crisp,bright, blocked gilt letters to spine/backstrip,a yellow headband and immaculate illustrated endpapers. UK,thick 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,vii-xiiipp+3-463pp [paginated] includes contents+illustrations (colour+b/w) lists/tables,author's note,Pts 1+2 comprising 50 chapters,32pp (16pp each, comprising 29 colour+38 b/w) contemporary b/w+colour illustrations/plates in 4 blocks of 8pp apiece,between pp80/1,pp176/7,pp272/3 and pp368/9 respectively,notes on sources,a bibliography; plus [unpaginated] title page,a dedication,and 3pp family tree. To most English people George III is the King who went mad: to most Americans he is the King stigmatized in the Declaration of Independence as 'unfit to be the ruler of a free people'.In the 19thC,because he was unwilling to leave government to the Whig aristocracy,he was discredited as a clumsy tyrant and a villain.In more recent years he has often been portrayed as 'Farmer George' or 'Mr King',an absurd figure pottering about Windsor,chatting to servants, stable-boys and the shopkeepers of the town, presiding over a most peculiar Court - regulated by a strict and often bizarre etiquette - worrying over his beloved daughter's sexual escapades and his sons' enormous debts and scandalous dissipations. In this absorbing book Christopher Hibbert reassesses a remarkable man,discusses his political beliefs and aspirations,his relationships with his ministers,courtiers and family,and the reasons why he came to be so widely loved by his subjects.He is portrayed as a man of great courage and sensibility,and generous patron of scientists,musicians,authors and artists,and as a discerning book collector in whose library Dr Johnson was so taken by his charm and knowledge. For all his eccenticities and occasional cantankerous outbursts,he is seen as a man of wide sympathies,intelligence and interests,farmer,amateur astronomer,architect and mechanic,a man of strong sexual urges who remained faithful to a plain and difficult wife,someone who was capable of flashes of wit and irony and who greatly enhanced the reputation of the British monarchy in the sixty years of his reign despite the fact that, suffering from a rare hereditary disorder,for a time lost his reason and disappeared into a world of strange imaginings. As the author of several highly praised studies of 18thC society,including a two- volume life of King George IV,Christopher Hibbert is well qualified to write the biography of George IV's father.In this book he again shows himself to be,in the words of the 'Independent' (a British newspaper),'one of England's greatest living historical writers' (then 1998). Please contact seller,because of the weight/ value of this item,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,item's actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if offered P/p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIR postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence,then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. 1/2 to 2/3rds of standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving long before the quoted 42 days - but not always. **

UK,thick 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.
Not SIGNED.

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