The Second World War, Chartwell Edition by Winston S. Churchill - 1955
by Winston S. Churchill
The Second World War, Chartwell Edition
by Winston S. Churchill
- Used
- Hardcover
London: Educational Book Company, 1955. Illustrated Edition. Hardcover. This is a full, six-volume set of the first illustrated edition of The Second World War. The first illustrated Chartwell edition of The Second World War was published soon after the British first edition and is aesthetically superior in every respect. It is also the final text, "in which all those first minor errors are corrected", according to the author. This particular edition is not only collectible, but also stands the test of time as among the most aesthetically pleasing and the most pleasant to actually read.
The standard binding for this issue was a bright red embossed calico-grain cloth stamped in gilt with brown leather spine labels and another rectangular brown leather label on the front cover bearing a blind-stamped profile of Churchill. The books have an agreeable weight and size, measuring roughly 9.75 x 6.75 inches (24.8 x 17.1 cm). The boards are stout and the spines have extensively gilt and blind ruled panels. The contents feature dark red endpapers, head and foot bands, and red stained top edges. The text is entirely reset from the first edition and features hundreds of illustrations. Each volume also contains a color frontispiece and three-color maps.
The very attractiveness of the sets invited handling, and the course red cloth is often scuffed, faded, and soiled, with the leather labels chipped. This set is in good plus condition, sound, complete, clean within, and eminently readable, though certainly showing some exterior age and wear. The red cloth bindings remain square, tight, and clean, with only minor blemishes and light shelf wear to extremities. Nonetheless, there is some toning to the spines and to the upper edges of the boards of several volumes. All of the leather spine labels are intact, though there is edge wear to a few and a minor scuff to the center of one of the Volume I spine labels. The contents are quite clean. We find no previous ownership marks and the only trace of spotting appears confined to the Volume II page edges. The red topstain varies across the set from sunned, pale red to darker red.
The Second World War is Churchill's history of the epic 20th Century struggle that was so indelibly stamped by his leadership. Seldom, if ever, has history endowed a statesman with both singular ability to make history, and singular ability to write it. As with so much of what Churchill wrote, The Second World War is not "history" in the strictly academic, objectivist sense, but rather Churchill's perspective on history. In his March 1948 introduction to the first volume, Churchill himself made the disclaimer, "I do not describe it as history... it is a contribution to history..." Nonetheless the compelling fact remains, as stated by Churchill himself, "I am perhaps the only man who has passed through both the two supreme cataclysms of recorded history in high Cabinet office... I was for more than five years in this second struggle with Germany the Head of His Majesty's government. I write, therefore, from a different standpoint and with more authority than was possible in my earlier books."
Certainly The Second World War may be regarded as an intensely personal and inherently biased history. Nonetheless, Churchill's work remains essential, iconic, and a vital part of the historical record. Richard Langworth calls the six-volume epic "indispensable reading for anyone who seeks a true understanding of the war that made us what we are today." This first illustrated edition was published in the year that Churchill finally and irrevocably relinquished the reins of power, resigning his second and final premiership and passing "into a living national memorial" of the time he lived and the Nation, Empire, and free world he served.
Please anticipate that this large, heavy set will be shipped at cost.
Reference: Cohen A240.7.b, Woods/ICS A123(d) Langworth p.269.
- Bookseller Churchill Book Collector (US)
- Format/Binding Hardcover
- Book Condition Used
- Quantity Available 1
- Edition Illustrated Edition
- Binding Hardcover
- Publisher Educational Book Company
- Place of Publication London
- Date Published 1955
We have 11 copies available starting at £97.94.
The Second World War - Chartwell Edition (6 Vol Set)
by CHURCHILL, WINSTON S & SHIRER, WILLIAM L (Fore)
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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DUNEDIN, Auckland, New Zealand
- Item Price
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£97.94
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The Second World War (Chartwell Edition, 6 Volume Set)
by Winston S. Churchill
- Used
- Very Good
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780395349298 / 039534929X
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Lithia , Florida, United States
- Item Price
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£130.48
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The Second World War - Six Volumes (Chartwell Edition)
by Churchill, Winston S
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used - Good Minus
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Carlisle, Cumbria, United Kingdom
- Item Price
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£120.00
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The Second World War (Chartwell Edition, 6 Volume Set)
by Winston S. Churchill; William L. Shirer [Foreword]
- Used
- Very Good
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780395349298 / 039534929X
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Asheville, North Carolina, United States
- Item Price
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£173.79
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The Second World War (Chartwell Edition, 6 Volume Set)
by Winston S. Churchill
- Used
- Condition
- Used - Collectible - Acceptable
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780395349298 / 039534929x
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Frederick, Maryland, United States
- Item Price
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£198.88
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THE SECOND WORLD WAR -Second Chartwell Edition-
by Winston S. Churchill
- Used
- Very Good
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Edition
- Second Chartwell Edition (Book-of-the-Month Club Binding) (Cohen
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Quantity Available
- 6
- Seller
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New York, New York, United States
- Item Price
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£278.46
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The Second World War Six Volume Set: Their Finest Hour; The Gathering Storm; The Hinge of Fate; The Grand Alliance; Closing the Ring; Triumph and Tragedy (Chartwell Edition)
by Churchill, Winston S. [Spencer]; Shirer, William L
- Used
- Fine
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used - Fine
- Jacket Condition
- No Jacket
- Edition
- Reissue
- Binding
- Hardcover
- ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
- 9780395349298 / 039534929X
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Webster, New York, United States
- Item Price
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£278.46
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Publisher's sample for the Chartwell Edition of The Second World War.
by CHURCHILL, Winston S
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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LONDON, United Kingdom
- Item Price
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£275.00
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The Second World War (The Chartwell Edition)
by Churchill, Winston S
- Used
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Used
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
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Surprise, Arizona, United States
- Item Price
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£596.70
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The Second World War - 6 volumes with Specimen - Chartwell Edition
by CHURCHILL Winston S
- Used
- Very Good
- first
- Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Edition
- First Illustrated Edition
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Seller
-
London, Greater London, United Kingdom
- Item Price
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£600.00