DEFOE, Daniel.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

The History of the Great Plague In London, in the Year 1665. Second edition of "Defoe's most under-appreciated great novel" (ODNB), his only fictional work to focus exclusively on England, first published in 1722. The second edition is notable for adding an account of the 1722 plague in Marseilles, the event which prompted its publication. It was originally published separately that year.Fearing that the plague would cross the channel, Defoe wrote the History in support of the government's proposed quarantine act. He drew on contemporary accounts and canvassed surviving eyewitnesses to supplement his childhood memories. It has consequently been mined as a possible source for Defoe's early life: the narrator "H.F." is sometimes read as a stand-in for his uncle Henry.

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.