# Is "The Napoleon of Notting Hill" by G.K. Chesterton a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Napoleon of Notting Hill by G.K. Chesterton (John Lane, The Bodley Head, 1904) is identified by: First published by John Lane, The Bodley Head, London, on 22 March 1904; the New York John Lane Company issue followed in April 1904, so the London printing is the true first. Chesterton's first novel.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First published by John Lane, The Bodley Head, London, on 22 March 1904; the New York John Lane Company issue followed in April 1904, so the London printing is the true first
- The first issue is an octavo in olive-green cloth lettered in BLACK on the front board and spine, with seven full-page plates by W. Graham Robertson and a map of 'the Seat of War'; the dedicatory poem to Hilaire Belloc appears on pp. v–vi and the text runs to p
- 301 with publisher's advertisements following
- The earliest state has top edges green with the other edges uncut
- Later copies of the edition are found with the front-cover lettering in RED rather than black, and a spine-foot imprint reading 'THE BODLEY HEAD' in place of 'JOHN LANE' is a recorded variant
- Publisher imprint reads John Lane, The Bodley Head
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | G.K. Chesterton |
| Publisher | John Lane, The Bodley Head |
| Year | 1904 |
| True first | American edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First published by John Lane, The Bodley Head, London, on 22 March 1904; the New York John Lane Company issue followed in April 1904, so… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First published by John Lane, The Bodley Head, London, on 22 March 1904; the New York John Lane Company issue followed in April 1904, so the London printing is the true first. The first issue is an octavo in olive-green cloth lettered in BLACK on the front board and spine, with seven full-page plates by W. Graham Robertson and a map of 'the Seat of War'; the dedicatory poem to Hilaire Belloc appears on pp. v–vi and the text runs to p. 301 with publisher's advertisements following. The earliest state has top edges green with the other edges uncut. Later copies of the edition are found with the front-cover lettering in RED rather than black, and a spine-foot imprint reading 'THE BODLEY HEAD' in place of 'JOHN LANE' is a recorded variant.

## Is this the true first?
Chesterton's first novel. The London John Lane / Bodley Head edition (22 March 1904) precedes the New York John Lane Company issue (April 1904): London is the true first, New York the first American; both are dated 1904. The census claim (Bodley Head London precedes the New York issue) is confirmed.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Within the first edition, black front-cover lettering precedes the later red-lettering state, and edges progress from uncut to trimmed; a 'THE BODLEY HEAD' spine-foot imprint variant is recorded. Cheap reprints followed; no book-club edition is documented for the 1904 printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Napoleon of Notting Hill* by G.K. Chesterton a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-napoleon-of-notting-hill
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.