History of the Commonwealth of England From its Commencement, to the Restoration of Charles the Second [First edition in 4 volumes]

London, England: Henry Colburn, 1824. First Edition. Hardcover. Very Good. London: Henry Colburn, 1824/26/27-28. First Edition in 4 volumes. Full leather with leather title and volume labels on stamped spines. Title label of volume two has a has a chipped corner else the set is very good. Edges rubbed; foxing to endpapers, and title pages. The text is otherwise in excellent condition. Marbled endpapers and edges. No expedited shipping. International shipping will require additional postage. Godwin is known as one of the first exponents of utilitarianism and the first modern proponent of anarchism. He was the husband of the feminist philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft and father of Mary Shelley. "William Godwin, who 30 years before, had published the highly successful Enquiry concerning political justice, published a four volume study of the English Republic. Godwin's publisher, Henry Colburn, paid an advance of five hundred pounds ...because he expected that the book would appeal to a public that showed a great deal of interest in the civil war period. One reason for this interest was that historical studies of the seventeenth century, and commentaries upon them in the reviews, played a significant role in contemporary political argument. As was often the case in the closing years of Godwin's life, the immediate motive for producing the History was financial. However, he had long been contemplating a work on this subject and the book, which its author described as the â_x0080__x0098_product ofâ_x0080__x0099_ his â_x0080__x0098_mature lifeâ_x0080__x0099_, was based on a substantial amount of research. In addition to standard sources, Godwin made extensive use of the Commons' and Lords' Journals, the Order Books of the Council of State and tracts from the King's Collection, later incorporated in the British Museum. He also entered into a considerable correspondence with other writers on matters relating to his study" (Morrow, 2009). The fundamental issues of the English Revolution centered around the creation of conditions, social and political, that would allow the growth of modernity after the decline of feudal society. In this enterprise Godwin championed the philosophical and moral roles of reason and human understanding. From the library of Maryland bibliophile Charles J. MacGarvey with his armorial bookplate to the pastedown. MacGarvey created an extensive study entitled â_x0080__x0098_Notes On Adam Smithâ_x0080__x0099_s Library and the Bonar Catalogue 1932â_x0080__x0099_ relating to the period.