The Martial Achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies; From 1799 to 1815. [JENKINS James] [Near Fine] [Hardcover]

A spectacular copy, very fresh and bright, with FIFTY FOUR hand coloured aquatints, including the Portrait of the Duke of Wellington Near Fine, First edition, [1814], large quarto, engraved title with an uncoloured vignette, fifty-four hand-coloured aquatint plates, including frontispiece (described as vignette title), dedication leaf, portrait of the Duke of Wellington (not present in most copies) and fifty-one views of military scenes and battles, on India paper, by T. Sutherland, J. Hassell, and others, from drawings by W. Heath. Tissue guards. Plates & text leaves watermarked 'J. Whatman 1812'. Large paper edition, bound with the Contents leaf and the list of subscribers at end. Contemporary full navy blue straight-grain morocco, covers decoratively panelled in gilt and blind, spine decoratively tooled and lettered in gilt in compartments, board edges and turn-ins tooled in gilt, all edges gilt, green watered silk end leaves decoratively tooled in gilt, flyleaves very lightly foxed, with crisp impressions of these finely engraved, vibrantly coloured plates. (338*268 mm). (Prideaux p341. Tooley 281). In a discussion of colour plate books on Wellington and Waterloo (a literature in themselves), Prideaux distinguishes this volume and Jenkins's 1817 companion volume, Naval Achievements of Great Britain and Her Allies, as worthy of their theme; nor could one desire a finer record of heroic deeds.