View source for History of England, from the Invasion of Julius Caesar to the Revolution of 1688

{{DISPLAYTITLE:''The History of England, from the Invasion of Julius Caesar to the Revolution of 1688''}}
===by David Hume===
{{BookPageInfoBox
|imagename=HumeHistoryOfEngland1762v1.jpg 
|link=https://wm.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01COWM_INST/g9pr7p/alma991025204769703196
|shorttitle=The History of England
|vol=volume one
|author=[[:Category:David Hume|David Hume]]
|lang=[[:Category:English|English]]
|publoc=[[:Category:London|London]]
|publisher=Printed for A. Millar
|year=1762
|set=6
|desc=[[:Category:Quartos|4to (29 cm.)]]
|shelf=B-2
}}[[wikipedia:David Hume|David Hume]] (1711 &ndash; 1776) is considered one of the most accomplished philosophers to write in the English language. Influencing many of his famous contemporaries, Hume is well known for his work as a historian and essayist. He is considered to be a "precursor of contemporary cognitive science" and a driving force in philosophical naturalism.<ref>William Edward Morris, "[http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2013/entries/hume/ David Hume]" in ''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,'' accessed October 7, 2013.</ref> Born in Edinburgh, Hume attended the [[wikipedia:University of Edinburgh|University of Edinburgh]] at a very young age.<ref>John Robertson, "[http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/14141 Hume, David (1711–1776)]" in ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,'' accessed October 7, 2013.</ref> His family intended for Hume to follow his father in law, but this was not to be. Instead, Hume devoted himself to philosophical study and writing, producing his first great work, [[wikipedia:Treatise of Human Nature|''A Treatise of Human Nature'']], in 1739.<ref>Ibid.</ref>

{{BookPageBookplate
|imagename=HumeHistoryofEngland1761BookplateV1.jpg
|display=left 
|caption=Bookplate, front pastedown, volume one.
}}Other works followed, including ''The History of England,'' which was published in six volumes from 1754 to 1762 and became a best seller. The work spans English history from Caesar's invasion to the [[wikipedia:Glorious Revolution|Glorious Revolution]] of 1688.<ref>''Encyclopædia Britannica Online,'' s.v. "[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/267616/History-of-England History of England]," accessed October 7, 2013.</ref> In this set, Hume attempts to give an "impartial account that looks at political institutions as historical developments responsive to Britons' experience of changing conditions, evaluating political decisions in the contexts in which they were made, instead of second-guessing them in the light of subsequent developments."<ref>Morris, "David Hume."</ref> It was "unprecedentedly readable, in structure as well as in phrasing. Persons and events were woven into causal patterns that furnished a narrative with the goals and resting points of recurrent climaxes."<ref>''Encyclopædia Britannica Online,'' s.v. "History of England."</ref> Future history books would be based on the writing and styles of Hume's ''History of England.''

==Evidence for Inclusion in Wythe's Library==
The [https://digitalarchive.wm.edu/handle/10288/13433 Brown Bibliography]<ref>Bennie Brown, "The Library of George Wythe of Williamsburg and Richmond," (unpublished manuscript, May, 2012) Microsoft Word file. Earlier edition available at: https://digitalarchive.wm.edu/handle/10288/13433.</ref> suggests Wythe owned this title based on the probable date (1762) of notes in [[Thomas Jefferson|Thomas Jefferson's]] commonplace book.<ref>Thomas Jefferson, ''Jefferson's Literary Commonplace Book,'' ed. Douglas L. Wilson (Princetone: Princeton University Press, 1989), 38-40.</ref> Brown lists the 1762 edition because Jefferson purchased that set in 1764. However, he notes that the one Jefferson used from Wythe's library may have been an earlier edition. [[Dean Bibliography|Dean's Memo]]<ref>[[Dean Bibliography|Memorandum from Barbara C. Dean]], Colonial Williamsburg Found., to Mrs. Stiverson, Colonial Williamsburg Found. (June 16, 1975), 9 (on file at Wolf Law Library, College of William & Mary).</ref> lists "Hume" under the section of titles Wythe assigned to his students citing a reference in William Clarkin's biography of Wythe.<ref>William Clarkin, Serene Patriot: a Life of George Wythe'' (Albany: Alan Publications, 1970), 156.</ref> The Wolf Law Library followed Brown's suggestion and added the 1762 edition of Hume's history.

==Description of the Wolf Law Library's copy==
Bound in contemporary calf with stamped decorative borders and gilt filets to covers. Spines feature five raised bands, gilt stamps  and gilt lettering. Edges are marbled. Each volume includes a bookplate with the initial "T" and the motto "Nemo me impune lacessit" (No one attacks me with impunity.) surmounted by a crown.

Images of the library's copy of this book are [https://www.flickr.com/photos/wolflawlibrary/sets/72157659179964688 available on Flickr.] View the record for this book in [https://wm.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01COWM_INST/g9pr7p/alma991025204769703196 William & Mary's online catalog.]
[[File:HumeHistoryOfEngland1762v1TOCTailpiece.jpg|left|thumb|250px|<center>Tail-piece, table of contents, volume one.</center>]]

===Full text===
<div style="width: 25%; overflow: hidden; column-count:2; -moz-column-count:2; -webkit-column-count:2;">
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV1.pdf Volume I] (25MB PDF)
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV2.pdf Volume II] (27MB PDF)
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV3.pdf Volume III] (24MB PDF)
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV4.pdf Volume IV] (20MB PDF)
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV5.pdf Volume V] (28MB PDF)
*[http://lawlibrary.wm.edu/wythepedia/library/HumeHistoryOfEnglandV6.pdf Volume VI] (35MB PDF)
</div>

==See also==
<div style="overflow: hidden;">
*''[[Essays]]''
*[[George Wythe Room]]
*[[Wythe's Library]]
</div>

==References==
<div style="overflow: hidden;">
<references/>
</div>

__NOTOC__
[[Category:British History]]
[[Category:David Hume]]
[[Category:George Wythe Collection at William & Mary's Wolf Law Library]]
[[Category:Titles in Wythe's Library]]

[[Category:English]]
[[Category:London]]
[[Category:Quartos]]