History of The Irish Rebellion in 1798. With Memoirs of the Union, and Emmett’s Insurrection in 1803. With Numerous Illustrations Drawn and Engraved by George Cruikshank. London: George Bell,1891. Later Edition. Bound in half brown morocco over cloth boards, spine with ruled bands, compartments ruled & embellished in gilt; title labels to second. Scattered foxin and off-setting to text, but overall a nice bright copy, handsomely bound.

First published in 1845, Maxwell’s partisan account of the 1798 Rebellion, blends historical narrative with vivid imagery, reflecting 19th-century British attitudes toward Irish nationalism.

William Hamilton Maxwell was born in Co. Down & attended Trinity College Dublin. His history of the 1798 Rebellion was written in a spirit hostile to the rebels, and accompanied with similarly hostile illustrations by George Cruikshank.

The crude racism is evident in his illustrations where Cruikshank’s lurid depictions of incidents in the rebellion were characterised by the ape-like portrayal of Irish rebels.