FIRST EDITION IN PARTS OF CHURCHILL’S ILLUSTRATED THE GREAT WAR

CHURCHILL, Winston. The Great War. Fully Illustrated with Photographs, Drawings and Maps. London: George Newnes, [1933-34]. Twenty-six parts. Quarto, original paper wrappers. Housed in two custom cloth chemises and half morocco slipcases with reproductions of the wrappers affixed to sides.

First illustrated edition of Churchill’s important World War I history The World Crisis, a very nice copy in the original parts. With the owner signature on Part 17 of Royal Navy Lieutenant D.K. Buchanan-Dunlop, who served on the British destroyer HMS Douglas.

With a new foreword by Churchill dated August 1933. Churchill's monumental history of the first World War was first published in six volumes as The World Crisis, 1923-31; these 26 parts were issued fortnightly by Newnes from September 1933 to October 1934, "in a form which will make them accessible to a very wide public." "Not only the best account of the most tremendous convulsion the world has ever seen, but one of the most brilliant treatises on war that has ever been written" (Spectator). With hundreds of photographic illustrations, maps, and plans. Index in part 26. Cohen A69.9.a. Langworth, 118-20. Woods A31a. With the owner pencil signature on the front wrapper of Part 17 of Royal Navy Lieutenant D.K. Buchanan-Dunlop, who served on the Admiralty destroyer HMS Douglas. The crew of HMS Douglas, commissioned in World War I and in service until 1943, served actively in World War II, escorting convoys with the 2nd Escort Group, but also hunting German U-boats, sinking U-65 with depth charges in the North Atlantic southeast of Iceland on April 28, 1941, and rescuing 18 men from the British tanker Capulet when that ship was torpedoed and damaged by U-552 during that same engagement. HMS Douglas rescued 29 survivors from the British merchant Louise Moller when that ship was torpedoed and sunk by U-178 about 240 miles southeast of Durban, South Africa, on November 13, 1942. HMS Douglas combined with the British trawler HMS Imperialist to sink U-732 in the mid-Atlantic near Tangier with depth charges, on October 31, 1943. Later bookplate on chemises.

Part 1 neatly respined. Remaining parts showing expected light age-wear to fragile original wrappers, but generally extremely good to near-fine, nicer than typically found.