# Is "The History of England from the Accession of James II" by Thomas Babington Macaulay a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The History of England from the Accession of James II by Thomas Babington Macaulay (Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1849) is identified by: The complete first edition comprises five volumes issued over twelve years by the same house, whose imprint gained additional partners' names over that period (from "Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans" on volumes I-II to "Longman, Green, Longman, Roberts, and Green" by volume V in 1861): volumes I-II, London, 1849; volumes III-IV, 1855; and volume V, published posthumously in 1861, unfinished at Macaulay's death in 1859, its narrative breaking off at the death of William III in 1702, and edited for the press by his sister, Lady Trevelyan. A complete first-edition set requires first printings of volumes I-II (1849), III-IV (1855), and the posthumous volume V (1861); because of exceptional early demand for volumes I-II, most surviving sets mix the true first printing of those volumes with early reprints dated the same year.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The complete first edition comprises five volumes issued over twelve years by the same house, whose imprint gained additional partners' names over that period (from "Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans" on volumes I-II to "Longman, Green, Longman, Roberts, and Green" by volume V in 1861): volumes I-II, London, 1849; volumes III-IV, 1855; and volume V, published posthumously in 1861, unfinished at Macaulay's death in 1859, its narrative breaking off at the death of William III in 1702, and edited for the press by his sister, Lady Trevelyan
- Volumes I-II were an immediate publishing sensation -- roughly thirteen thousand copies sold within four months of publication -- so first printings of the early volumes were quickly followed by numerous early reprintings dated the same year, and volumes are typically found in brown cloth, blind-stamped, lettered in gilt on the spine
- A verified first-edition set therefore requires correct first-printing title pages across all five volumes rather than a single point in any one volume
- Publisher imprint reads Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Thomas Babington Macaulay |
| Publisher | Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans |
| Year | 1849 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The complete first edition comprises five volumes issued over twelve years by the same house, whose imprint gained additional partners'… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
The complete first edition comprises five volumes issued over twelve years by the same house, whose imprint gained additional partners' names over that period (from "Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans" on volumes I-II to "Longman, Green, Longman, Roberts, and Green" by volume V in 1861): volumes I-II, London, 1849; volumes III-IV, 1855; and volume V, published posthumously in 1861, unfinished at Macaulay's death in 1859, its narrative breaking off at the death of William III in 1702, and edited for the press by his sister, Lady Trevelyan. Volumes I-II were an immediate publishing sensation -- roughly thirteen thousand copies sold within four months of publication -- so first printings of the early volumes were quickly followed by numerous early reprintings dated the same year, and volumes are typically found in brown cloth, blind-stamped, lettered in gilt on the spine. A verified first-edition set therefore requires correct first-printing title pages across all five volumes rather than a single point in any one volume.

## Is this the true first?
A complete first-edition set requires first printings of volumes I-II (1849), III-IV (1855), and the posthumous volume V (1861); because of exceptional early demand for volumes I-II, most surviving sets mix the true first printing of those volumes with early reprints dated the same year.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The History of England from the Accession of James II* by Thomas Babington Macaulay a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-history-of-england-from-the-accession-of-james-ii
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.