1801 Hudibras, In Three Parts, Written In The Time of The Late Wars… By Samuel Butler, Esq. With large annotations and a preface by Zachary Grey, Complete in two volumes. These are beautifully bound fine bindings! Full calf leather, with gold gilt detailing and a gorgeous marbled fore edge!! The books are filled with steel engravings as well and little vignettes. They were published in London.
*This book is a famous 17th-century mock-heroic satirical poem written by Samuel Butler (1613–1680). Published in three parts between 1663 and 1678, it was written as a sharp, witty backlash against the Puritans, Presbyterians, and other Parliamentarian factions involved in the English Civil War. The story follows Sir Hudibras, a pompous Presbyterian knight, and his squire, Ralpho, on absurd, misguided adventures as they attempt to “reform” the world. It was a strongly royalist work celebrating the restoration of King Charles II by mocking the political and religious hypocrisies of the preceding Puritan regime. The poem is famous for its unique “Hudibrastic” verse—octosyllabic couplets with witty, often irregular rhymes. It is noted for its high-energy inventiveness and scathing wit.
