The History of Great-Britain, from the first Inhabitants thereof, 'till the Death of Cadwalader,

London: Holborn. Covent-Garden. Pater-Noster-Row.: F Gyles. Woodman and Lyon. C Davis., 1729. First Edition . Hardcover. Very Good. Elephant Folio - over 15 - 23" tall. Sm Elephant folio, VG+, 1st ed, 1729. In modern half calf with marbled boards, to style, some blind tooling. Spine, gilt decorative tooling, raised bands. contemporary gilt title on red calf label. Internally, new endpapers, rubricated title, [2], [1], 2-71, [1], 251, [1], [11], [1], [4], [1], [1], [1], 2-8, 13-32, 35-52, [2] wordes, (mis-numbered but correct). Faint initial at head of tp, British Museum 11804 stamp to tp verso, text block edges marbled red, occasional ink marginal note, main text block watermarked with Horse circled, Breviary watermarked 1723, 15&9.5 inches. (ESTC T113293. Allibone 1091. Brunet 1038). Pencil notes states only 200 copies published? Lewis, whose complete history was first published in 1729, over a century after its author's death, by the antiquary Hugh Thomas, perhaps using the text still extant in Harleian MS 4872 in the British Library. Like earlier Welsh historians, for instance Humphrey Llwyd (whose Breviary of Britayne is appended to the 1729 edition of Lewis's book), Lewis was reluctant to part with the much-criticized legends of ancient British kings, from Brutus the Trojan to King Arthur, as recorded by Geoffrey of Monmouth. Title continues: last king of the Britains ; and of the Kings of Scotland to Eugenev. As also A short Account of the Kings, Dukes, and Earls of Bretagne, 'till that Dukedom was united to the Crown of France, ending with the Year of our Lord 68 ; in which are several Pieces of Taliessin, an antient British Poet, and a Defence of the Antiquity of the Scotish Nation: With many other Antiquities, never before published in the English Tongue: With a Compleat Index to the Whole. By John Lewis, Esq ; Barrester at Law. Now first published from his original manuscript. To which is added, The breviary of Britayne, written in Latin by Humfrey Lhuyd, of Denbigh, a Cambre Britayne ; and lately englished by Thomas Twine, Gent.