Panegyrics of Oliver Cromwell, Peck, 1740

Title Page

Memoirs of the Life and Actions of Oliver Cromwell,1740

Francis Peck, the compiler of the volume, believes Milton to be the actual author of all three of these Latin panegyrics of Oliver Cromwell (died 1658). Milton served as the secretary to Cromwell, the general who led the Commonwealth between the deposition and execution of Charles I (1649) and the Restoration of Charles II (1660). While deeply implicated in the politics of its time, the book is of interest here because of the extravagance of its production: foldout portraits, extensive ornamentation, and multiple title pages (one for each major section.) Reading the full title under the bibliographic description is the best summary of the book's contents.

Bibliographic Description

A personal coat of arms above an inhabited initial "T."	This volume has multiple title pages, of which this is the second.	Foldout portrait.
Portrait of the compiler of the volume.	Third title page.	Handwritten extract from Thomas Hobson's will. It was not uncommon for important documents and intentions to be written into personal copies of books.

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