The Trial of Thomas Hardy for High Treason, At the Sessions House...
The Most Extensive Account of an Important Trial Inspired by Fear of the French Revolution [Trial]. Hardy, Thomas [1752-1832], Defendant. Gurney, Joseph [1744-1815], Reporter. The Trial of Thomas Hardy for High Treason, At the Sessions House in the Old Bailey, On Tuesday the Twenty-Eighth, Wednesday the Twenty-Ninth, Thursday the Thirtieth, Friday the Thirty-First of October; And on Saturday the First, Monday the Third, Tuesday the Fourth, And Wednesday the Fifth of November, 1794. Taken in Short-Hand. London: Sold by Martha Gurney, Bookseller, 1794-1795. Four volumes in two books. [ii], 418, 412; [ii], 423, [1], 444, xiv pp. Octavo (8-1/2" x 5-1/4"). Later cloth, calf lettering pieces to spine. Light rubbing to boards and extremities. Moderate toning to interior, light foxing in a few places, light soiling to title pages. $1,250. * Only edition. A shoemaker by trade, Hardy was the founder and first secretary of the London Corresponding Society, a popular worker's association committed to the cause of universal male suffrage. Unnerved by the excesses of the French Revolution and fearful that it would inspire domestic unrest, the government indicted Hardy for high treason in 1794. He was the first person tried under these circumstances. The goal was to convict him in order to stifle dissent. However, the public saw Hardy as an unjustly persecuted apostle of English liberty. And as the trial proved, the Crown's case, prosecuted by Eldon, had little merit and Hardy, defended by Erskine, was acquitted to great acclaim. Of the several published accounts, Gurney's is the most extensive. English Short-Title Catalogue T73926.
Price: $1,250.00
Book number 73383