Early Eighteenth-century Public Affairs

i) Two volumes mostly comprising tracts on 15 on the royal succession and Jacobitism including: [Defoe, Daniel.] And What if the Pretender should come? J. Baker, 1713; Reasons against the succession of the House of Hanover. J. Baker, 1713; An Essay Towards the History of the Last Ministry and Paliament. J. Baker, 1710--A Full Answer to the Depositions ... Concerning the Birth of the Pretended Prince of Wales. n.p., 1711, folding plate of St James's Palace; and 21 others;
ii) One volume of tracts on Quakerism, mostly dating from 1707-8, including: Beaven, Thomas. The High-Priest of Melksham. J. Sowle, 1707--Fox, Bohun. Thomas Beaven's Vindication of his Second Thoughts Relating to the Quakers. for John Wyat ... and sold at R. Warne's in Chippenham, 1707, with initial advertisement leaf--[Bugg, Francis.] News from Pensilvania. n.p., 1703; and 5 others;
iii) One volume on miscellaneous public affairs of the 1710s such as the Test Acts and the War of Spanish Succession including: An Account of the Earl of Galway's Conduct in Spain and Portugal. J. Baker, 1711--[Defoe, Daniel.] The Secret History of the October Club. n.p., 1711, half-title; A Sharp Rebuke From one of the People called Quakers to Henry Sacheverell. S. Keimer, 1715; and ten others;
iv) Three volumes of 22 tracts on the toleration of Episcopacy in Scotland, 1700s;
v) One volume of 6 tracts on Roman Catholic affairs including the case of Catherine Cadiére, 1730s;
vi) One volume of 4 tracts on public affairs of the 1730s, notably the Sinking Fund; all 8vo, contemporary bindings (four in panelled calf, three in full calf, one with marbled boards, one with papered boards), three with lettering pieces (numbered on spine 14, 17, 24, 26, 27, 28 and 39, the others unnumbered), one volume lacking upper cover, one volume splitting at spine, bindings worn, occasional nicks, tears, and staining (9)

The Forbes Baronetcy was created in 1626 for Sir William Forbes (d. circa 1650) by James VI in the Barontage of Nova Scotia. The majority of the works offered here were acquired by the sixth Baronet, also William (1739-1806), who added Pitsligo to his title in 1781. He was an eminent Scottish banker and benefactor, good friend of James Boswell and Samuel Johnson (see lots 45-46), and finally succeeded in recovering the Pitsligo estates forfeited after the Jacobite rebellion of 1745. His son William, the seventh baronet, beat Sir Walter Scott to the hand of the renowned beauty Williamina Belsches Stuart (1776-1810), and it was with their marriage that the family moved to her family seat, Fettercairn House in Kincardineshire, Aberdeenshire.

One of the sixth baronet’s acquisitions for his library at Pitsligo were numerous highly important miscellanies and tract volumes, many of which were purchased as a set from Edinburgh bookseller Elphinstone Balfour in October 1786. These were subsequently supplemented by further contemporary tracts and other works from the late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century. Most of these miscellanies bear a nineteenth century Forbes family bookplate.

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing unless otherwise stated
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A RICH COLLECTION OF TRACTS FROM ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND IN THE FIRST DECADES OF THE 18TH CENTURY INCLUDING FOUR TITLES BY DANIEL DEFOE.