Dallington, Aphorismes civill and militarie, London, 1613, contemporary calf gilt

DALLINGTON, SIR ROBERT

Aphorismes civill and militarie: amplified with authorities, and exemplified with historie, out of the first quarterne of Fr. Guicciardine. London: Edward Blount, 1613 

FIRST EDITION, 2 parts in one volume, folio (277 x 180mm.), woodcut printer’s device on title, engraved portrait of the dedicatee Prince Charles on title verso, woodcut headpieces and decorative initials, contemporary calf gilt, some slight wear to covers, some minor damp-staining

The author had been introduced to Prince Henry in 1605, serving him for four years without reward; in 1609 Dallington presented Henry with a manuscript translation "Aphorismes civill and militarie", selected from the Italian historian Francesco Guicciardini. As a result of this gift Dallington was fee'd as a gentleman-in-ordinary of the prince's chamber, joining the distinguished group of scholars who attended James I's high-minded heir. After the prince's death in 1612 Dallington reworked his Aphorismes for publication, as published here with a new dedication to Prince Charles. "Improbably the ruse worked a second time, and Dallington became one of the few members of Prince Henry's household to be retained by the new heir. It has even been suggested that Charles may have derived his unfortunate persuasion that duplicity was a princely virtue from reading Dallington's Guicciardini..." (see ODNB).

LITERATURE:

ESTC S109203; STC 6197