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London, 1757. First edition. The Blueprint for 1776: Lord Somers' 1757 Compendium of the Rights of Englishmen [Somers, John Somers, Baron (1651-1716)]. [Lewis, John, Editor, Author of The Sequel of Advice to Posterity]. A Guide to the Knowledge of the Rights and Privileges of Englishmen. Containing, I. Magna Charta, with Remarks Thereon; II. The Bishops Curses; III. The Habeas Corpus Act; IV. The Bill of Rights; And, V. The Act of Settlement: With an Exhortation to the Christian and Independent Clergy, The Gentry, Freeholders, And Other Electors of Members to Serve in Parliament. To Which is Added, The Security of Englishmens Lives: Or, The Trust, Power, And Duty of the Grand Juries of England. Published in Consequence of the Recommendation of the Author of, Advice to Posterity, In his Sequel Thereof. With a Short Prefatory Address to the Public by the Editor. London: Printed for J. Scott, 1757. ix, [1], 254 pp. Includes one-page publisher list, errata slip tipped onto verso of title page. 12mo. (6-1/2" x 4"; 16.5 x 10 cm). Contemporary speckled calf, gilt rules to boards, rebacked in period style with gilt-edged raised bands, lettering piece and gilt ornaments to spine, blind tooling to board edges, edges of text block speckled red, endpapers retained. Light rubbing and a few small scuffs to boards, faint dampstain to rear board, moderate rubbing to board edges, corners bumped, hinges mended. Very light toning to interior, eighteenth or nineteenth-century owner signature ("W.C. Grove") to title page, otherwise internally clean. A very good copy with a fresh interior. $1,750. * First edition. Attributed to John Lord Somers, a chief architect of the English Bill of Rights, and edited by John Lewis, this work is a definitive compendium of the foundational documents of British liberty and serves as a powerful 18th-century manual for civic independence and legal protection. It includes Somers' landmark treatise on the "Trust, Power, and Duty of the Grand Juries of England." This text remains a seminal work of legal thought, arguing that the grand jury is the primary barrier against "false accusers" and arbitrary state power. Attributed sometimes to John Dunton and Daniel Defoe, it went through numerous editions and includes the full text and commentary on Magna Charta, the Habeas Corpus Act, the Bill of Rights, and the Act of Settlement.
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