Marlborough: His Life and Times, a full set of six U.S. first edition, first printings in the rare first state dust jackets and slipcases.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1933. First edition. Hardcover. Here is a full set of six U.S. first edition, first printings of Winston Churchill’s monumental biography of his great ancestor, John Churchill, the first Duke of Marlborough. This set features the quite scarce first state dust jackets and slipcases.
The strange, rare case of the first state dust jackets and slipcases
The U.S. publisher chose to split the first two volumes into two books each; the six-volume U.S. first edition is identical in content to its four-volume British counterpart, but dramatically different in appearance. Moreover, there were two distinctly different states of the U.S. first edition. The first four U.S. volumes were originally issued in two-volume sets, with cream-colored dust jackets featuring green print, each two-volume set housed in an illustrated publisher’s slipcase. The fifth volume was originally issued in a white dust jacket with a red-printed design matching that of the two slipcases for volumes I & II and volumes III & IV. Only in 1938, when the sixth and final U.S. volume was published, were the more commonly seen blue and gold dust jackets issued. Today the first state dust jackets are quite scarce, and the fragile original slipcases doubly so.
Condition
This is a full, first state set of near fine first printing volumes in very good minus or better dust jackets, each of which is fitted with a clear, removable, archival cover. The first four volumes are truly fine, having been protected by both their original dust jackets and slipcases. The bindings show no soiling or toning. With the sole exception of some spotting to the Volume I & II top edges, the contents show no soiling, spotting, or previous ownership marks. The Volume I & II dust jackets are complete, though the jacket spines are toned and a bit scuffed, with a few small moisture stains to the Volume II spine. The Volume I & II slipcase is soiled and edgeworn, but fully intact. The Volume III & IV dust jackets show loss at the spine ends, a small chip loss to the Volume III front joint just below the volume number, and appreciable toning, scuffing, and a few small moisture stains to the lower Volume III spine. The slipcase for Volumes III & IV is intact, though appreciably toned with abrasion to the edges, sometimes exposing the card beneath, and a black inked “R” at the lower right side of the slipcase.
Volume V is near fine plus in a very good first state dust jacket. The jacket is unclipped and highly complete, with fractional chipping confined to the spine head and upper flap fold corners and two .5 inch closed tears to the rear face. The jacket spine retains strong red print, though the the upper bar at the spine head is abraded. The book beneath is an unusually fine example, the contents bright with no spotting or previous ownership marks and mild age toning confined to the text block edges. The green cloth binding is tight, clean, and square with sharp corners and virtually no wear. Of particular note, the spine is wholly unfaded with very bright gilt - a rarity since the gilt on this particular volume is exceedingly prone to fading.
Volume VI is also near fine plus in an unusually clean and complete near-fine blue and gold dust jacket that was the first issue for this final volume. Volume VI saw fewer copies issued than any of the five preceding volumes and only one printing, so is the most difficult to find, particularly in such condition. The green cloth binding is immaculate - square, clean, and tight with sharp corners, bright gilt, and virtually no wear. The contents are clean and bright with no previous ownership marks or internal spotting. A hint of barely discernible spotting is confined to the otherwise clean fore and bottom edges. The dust jacket remains bright and entirely complete, with no loss and the original $2.75 price intact on the upper front flap. Spine presentation is superlative. Trivial wear is confined to the extremities and front hinge, and minor scuffing to the front face.
Winston and the First Duke
Marlborough ultimately took 10 years of research and writing and is the most substantial published work of Churchill's "wilderness years" in the 1930s, which he spent politically isolated, often at odds with both his own party and prevailing public sentiment. Churchill may have wondered if the life history he was writing might eclipse his own. It has been said that "To understand the Churchill of the Second World War, the majestic blending of his commanding English with historical precedent, one has to read Marlborough.”
Few accuse Churchill of objectivity. Nonetheless, as a work of history it drew high praise. Upon reading the proofs, James Lewis Garvin, editor of The Observer, wrote “I think it to be… the greatest of all your works…” Two months after Volume I was published, T.E. Lawrence wrote to Churchill: “Its parts balance and the main stream flows… It is history, solemn and decorative.” When Churchill was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953, it was partly for “mastery of historical and biographical description” on the strength of Marlborough, which was specifically cited by the Swedish Academy.
Reference: A97.4(I-VI).a, Woods/ICS A40(ba), Langworth p.169. Item #009000
Price: $1,450.00