A Voyage Round the World, In the Years MDCCXL, I, II, II, IV. By George Anson, Esq; Commander in Chief of a Squadron of His Majesty’s Ships, sent upon an Expedition to the South-Seas.

ANSON, George. Compiled by Richard Walter.

$3,800.00

Item Number: 149503

London: Printed for the Author, 1748.

First edition, first issue of the highly anticipated, best-selling official account of Anson’s voyages which went through numerous editions and was translated into several European languages. Quarto, three volumes bound in three quarter crushed levant morocco over pebbled boards with gilt titles and five raised bands to the spine, marbled endpapers, illustrated with forty-two folding maps and copper-plates. Of this voyage, Sabin wrote “the progress of science formed no part of this expedition which was prepared for attacking, unawares, the Spanish possessions and shipping in the South Sea, and which was so successful, that the prize-money divided amongst the officers and crews amounted to more than a million sterling.” (Sabin 101175). Hill pp. 317-8. In very good condition with rubbing to the extremities. Very clean internally with some expert repairs to the versos of some of the large folding plates. Armorial bookplate to each pastedown, ownership inscription to the title page on the first volume. A very sharp set.

"Anson's voyage is remembered as a classic tale of endurance and leadership in the face of fearful disasters, but to the British public of 1744 it was the treasure of the galleon, triumphantly paraded through the streets of London, which did something to restore national self-esteem battered by an unsuccessful war" (ODNB). Anson (1697-1762) commanded a squadron dispatched with the objective of plundering Spanish trading territories along the Pacific coast of South America during the War of Jenkins' Ear. His expedition, however, was fraught with challenges, threatening to devolve into a disastrous military failure. The small fleet he led endured relentless storms, resulting in severe damage to the ships and substantial loss of life. Few of his crew members survived the harrowing journey around Cape Horn, leaving insufficient manpower to properly operate even the largest vessel in his squadron. Anson persevered, navigating across the Pacific to Macao, where he was able to effect repairs on the Centurion and recruit additional crew members. His persistence ultimately bore fruit in June 1743, when he achieved a singular but significant victory by capturing a Spanish treasure ship, the Manila Galleon, off the coast of the Philippines. This remarkable success enabled Anson to return to England in June 1744 as a wealthy man, having significantly augmented his fortune through the plunder of Spanish wealth.