The General History of the Reformation of the Church, From the Errors and Corruptions of the Church of Rome: Begun in Germany by Martin Luther, With the Progress thereof in all Parts of Christendom From the Year 1517, to the Year 1556. Written in Latin...And faithfully Englished. To which is Added, A Continuation To the End of the Council of Trent, in the Year 1562. By Edmund Bohun, Esq.
London: Printed by Edw. Jones, for Abel Swall...and Henry Bonwicke... 1689. Second English edition of an important history of the Reformation. Title-page printed in black and red. The Bohun work with separate title-page. With six engraved portrait plates. Joints starting to crack, but sound. Armorial bookplate of Cobbold of Ipswich, later ownership annotation, dated 1980 on front pastedown. A good, clean copy. Contemporary reverse calf, ruled in blind. Folio. [14], 638 (with some mispagination), [2], 100, [32, index] pp. Item #16034
Johannes Sleidanus (1506-66) was born in Schleidan, Luxembourg and studied ancient languages and literatures at Liège and Cologne, and law and jurisprudence at Paris and Orléans. At Lièges he encountered humanist scholars and developed an interest in Protestant ideas. He went to work for Cardinal du Bellay and was employed in the futile negotiations of the French court to make an alliance with the German Protestants against the Emperor Charles V. In 1542 he settled in Strassbourg. He was in the habit of copying all papers that had any bearing on the Reformation to which he had access, and Martin Bucer, who had seen his papers, suggested that Philip of Hesse appoint him historian of the Reformation, giving him a salary and access to all necessary documents. Thus began his great work, the first volume of which appeared in 1545. That same year, he traveled to England in a French embassy to Henry VIII, and there he collected further materials for his work. He later went to Marburg to view the archives of Philip of Hesse. In 1551 he attended the Council of Trent. He finished his history in 1554, despite financial problems. He died in poverty the following year.
The present work was first translated into English by John Daus in 1560. The present translation is by Bohun.
Price: $950.00