Ferdinando Warner - The History of the Rebellion and Civil-War in Ireland. 2 volumes complete - 1768

The History of the Rebellion and Civil-War in Ireland. 2 volumes complete. – Ferdinando Warner

Dublin: Printed for James Williams in Skinner-Row, 1768. 2 volumes. Vol I: xx, 288 pages; Vol II: [4], 332 pages. 20.3cm x 12.3cm. Contemporary full mottled leather binding with gilt lettered labels on the spines with 5 raised bands and sprinkled edges. Scarce first Dublin edition of Ferdinando Warner’s highly significant, specialized 18th-century survey detailing the Irish conflicts of the mid-17th century. While the work was originally published in London in a single large quarto volume, this highly sought-after Dublin market edition was elegantly restructured into two octavo volumes by the prominent printer James Williams in Skinner-Row. Warner’s text stands as a landmark of objective, source-based Irish historiography. Though written from an Anglo-Irish perspective, he famously utilized official government registries and depositories to actively refute the widely exaggerated Protestant casualty numbers from the Rebellion of 1641. His writing remains celebrated for a level of historical impartiality rare for his era, openly condemning the anti-Catholic Penal Laws while carefully balancing political responsibility for the massacres.
Some rubbing, bumping, and wear to the boards and spines. The hinges are slightly cracked at both ends (see photos). Pencil markings and Ex Libris sticker on the front pastedown endpaper in both volumes. In Vol I there are pencil and pen markings on pages xii-xiii, page 91 is numbered as page 87 (the text is complete), and there is a hole in the margin of page 107/108. In Vol II the corner of page 85/86 is torn off, not affecting the content. Some browning and spotting throughout. The text is clear, the paper is crisp, and the binding is solid in both volumes. Overall, a handsome set in very good condition.