This Item Has Been Sold
THE WORLD CRISIS
-Signed First English Edition Set in the Rare Original Dust Jackets-
1923-31
First English Edition Set
Thornton Butterworth Ltd. [London]
Biblio: (Cohen A69.2) (Woods A31ab)
8vo (5 volumes in 6 books. 2,500+ pages, illustrated with folding maps and plans.)
Hardcover (with Dust Jackets) [Dark blue cloth]
Item Number: 8746
Collector's Guide
The World Crisis is Churchill’s highly subjective history of the First World War. Comprising five volumes (in six books) written over eight years, the initial titles were first published in the U.S. (by a matter of days), making the American edition the true first edition. Volume I (1911-1914) and Volume II (1915) were published in 1923. Volume III (1916-1918 ) was published in two parts in 1927 (hence the five/in six volumes ultimate format). Volume IV (The Aftermath 1918-1928) was published in 1929; and Volume V (The Unknown War/The Eastern Front) in 1931. A one-volume abridgment by the author was soon issued. Most subsequent re-issues have been incomplete, abridged, or otherwise condensed versions of the original text.
Description
This is a very good First English edition set, signed in ink: “Winston S. Churchill” on the second front free endpaper of VOLUME II.
All six books are in their extraordinarily rare, correct and unclipped First Edition dust jackets. The jackets of VOLUMES I & II (Books 1 and 2) are marvelously fresh and bright, front and rear, with some darkening and light wear to the spines and a touch of ink transfer across the front face of VOLUME II. The jacket of VOLUME III/Part 1 (Book 3 ) has one-half-inch of loss across the spine head, wrapping around the front and rear faces, as well as small gaps along the front jacket fold. The jacket of VOLUME III/Part 2 (Book 4) has fractional loss at the spine head and along the top rear edge. The jacket of VOLUME IV: THE AFTERMATH (Book 5 ) is virtually mint. The jacket of VOLUME VI:THE EASTERN FRONT (Book 6) has closed tears along the spine and an inch of loss midway, not affecting any text, with fractional losses at the head and tail. There are small chips to each corner, some fading and short, closed tears along the perimeters of both faces. The VOLUME II signature page is moderately toned along the inner margin only. Spots of foxing appear on the fore-edges of VOLUMES III-VI. The set is otherwise pristine.
A prize.