Francis Grose (1731 - 1791), was an antiquary and lexicographer.GROSE, Francis, an eminent English antiquary, was the son of Mr. Francis Grose, of Richmond, jeweller, who died in 1769. He was born in 1731, and having a taste for heraldry and antiquities, his father procured him a place in the college of arms, which, however, he resigned in 1763. By his father he was left an independent fortune, which he was not of a disposition to add to or even to preserve. He early entered into the Surrey militia, of which he became adjutant and paymaster; but so much had dissipation taken possession of him, that in a situation which above all others required attention, he was so careless as to have for some time (as he used pleasantly to tell) only two books of accounts, viz. his right and left pockets. In the one he received, and from the other paid; and this too with a want of circumspection which may be readily supposed from such a mode of book-keeping. His losses on this occasion roused his latent talents: with a good classical education he united a fine taste for drawing, which he now began to cultivate; and encouraged by his friends, he undertook the work from which he derived both profit and reputation: his Views of Antiquities in England and Wales, which he first began to publish in numbers in 1773, and finished in 1776.To this he was not excited by the hope of emolument ; for he made a free gift to his printer, Mr. Samuel Hooper, of the drawings for TA« Antiquities of England and Wales.But it should not be forgotten, that the great success of this work enabled Mr. Hooper, with unparalleled generosity, to present Mrs. Grose with a bank note for £800. The next year he added two more volumes to his English views, in which he included the islands of Guernsey and Jersey, which were completed in 1787. ( 1779 Masstr Samuel Hooper was at this time enrolled in the list of Bankrupts;but the natural good temper of Captain Grose soon induced him to continue his accustomed friendship, which ended only with life ). This work, which was executed with accuracy and elegance, soon became a favourite with the public at large, as well as with professed antiquaries, from the neatness of the embellishments, and the succinct manner in which he conveyed his information, and therefore answered his most sanguine expectations; and, from the time he began it to the end of his life, he continued without intermission to publish various works, generally to th advantage of his literary reputation, and almost always to the benefit of his finances. His wit and good-humour were the abundant source of satisfaction to himself and entertainment to his friends. He visited almost every part of the kingdom, and was a welcome guest wherever he went. In the summer of 1789 he set out on a tour in Scotland; the result of which he began to communicate to the public in 1790, in numbers. Before he had concluded this work, he proceeded to Ireland, intending to furnish that kingdom with views and descriptions of her antiquities, in the same manner he had executed those of Great Britain; but soon after his arrival in Dublin, being at the house of Mr. Hone there, he suddenly was seized at table with an apoplectic fit, on the 6th May 1791, and died immediately. He was interred in Dublin. (from "The General Biographical Dictionary" by Alexander Chalmers, F.S.A., 1814)

. . . . . ."Hope of profit, therefore, may not have prompted the publication of Grose's The Antiquities of England and Wales. This work published engravings, much smaller than, but similar in character to, the Bucks' Views (1726&endash;42), generally panoramas of medieval structures intended to convey the maximum information, rather than interesting compositions or illustrations of details. Grose's novelty was to publish text with the views. His purpose, stated in the introduction, was popular, 'for the use of such as are desirous of having, without much trouble, a general knowledge of the subjects treated in this publication', and a similar motive guided his contributions to the periodical Antiquarian Repertory (1775&endash;86). The first part of the Antiquities appeared in February or March 1772, with each view and its descriptive text on a separate page. Periodically a title-page and introduction were issued to signal completion of a volume... Grose gave up the large house in Wandsworth for lodgings at Clement's Inn, just west of the City of London (first taken in 1771), and then nearby with his publisher Samuel Hooper, now being a regular and genial participant in the Society of Antiquaries, to which he had been elected in 1757. The sympathetic sketch by Nathaniel Dance engraved in 1787 shows the stocky, corpulent figure which Grose himself caricatured. From 1783 he published in a torrent to make a living. The Supplement to the Antiquities was resumed, with a greater proportion of views from other artists, particularly S. H. Grimm, and was completed with 309 plates in 1787. This and the main series were reissued in a cheaper edition in 1783&endash;7... Grose must have exhausted for publication the stock of sketches and notes which he had accumulated over forty years. He returned to viewing monuments of antiquity, even though (as he said in a volume of satirical essays, The Grumbler, 1791) he was too fat to ride a horse and too poor to keep a carriage. The Antiquities of Scotland was compiled with tours in 1788, 1789, and 1790 and publication was completed in April 1791. On his second tour, in summer 1789, he met Robert Burns and the two became firm friends. He became the subject of some witty verses by Burns, who was inspired by Grose to write 'Tam o' Shanter' to accompany a drawing of Alloway kirk printed in The Antiquities of Scotland. Work began on The Antiquities of Ireland in 1790, but on his next visit, on 12 May 1791, he died suddenly of an apoplectic fit at Horace Hone's house in Dame Street, Dublin, and was buried on 18 May 1791 at Drumcondra church, co. Meath. His nephew Daniel and Dr Edward Ledwich completed the project in 1796. His library and drawings were dispersed at auction." Oxford DNB

Original engravings created by Samuel Sparrow for Francis Grose's "The Antiquities of England and Wales". Then published by Samuel Hooper, Ludgate Hill, London

Early editions published/sold with Alexander, HOGG,  bookseller, London 1771-1824: 16, King's Arms, Paternoster Row c1778-1819; 81, Mark Lane 1820-1824. Trading: as Alexander Hogg c1778-1805; as Alexander Hogg and Co. 1806-1810; as Hogg and Co. 1811-1824. Livery Wheelwrights' Co. by 1792. Formerly journeyman to John Cooke some of whose copies he took over. Succ. C. Johnson as publisher of Wonderful Magazine. Publ. New London Magazine 1785-92. Prominent as a publisher of widely advertised works in weekly numbers known as 'Paternoster Row numbers'. Sources: Chubb; Darlington and Howgego; J. C. Smith 641; Maxted (1977) Imprints: BM Satires 1780-81, 1793;

His works are-

1. The Antiquities of England and Wales, Being a Collection of Views of the Most remarkable Ruins and antient Buildings, Accurately drawn on the spot. To each view is added An Historical Accounf of its Situation, when and by whom built, with every interesting Circumstance relating thereto. Collected from the best authorities.(1773-87) in total 1136 engraved plates and half-page county maps, London, Printed by C. Clarke, for S. Hooper, No. 212 High Holborn, opposite Southampton Street, Bloomsbury Square, M.DCC.LXXXIII [1783]

There are some 640 engraved views and plans. These COPPER PLATE views were mostly engraved by Sparrow and Godfrey. All were issued uncoloured.It was a HUGE work, containing up to 57 MAPS of the English and Welsh Counties. The maps were those of John SELLER who had died in 1697. The original John SELLER maps are really quite scarce, although the GROSE/SELLER maps are comparatively more common. The Grose/Seller maps had an interesting historical notes and text added below the map & this text was continued verso.

The images were also issued as The Antiquarian Repertory, volume (1776) the difference being the title in larger type under the image and the written history to the page. the ones from 'Antiquities' are on a single clear backed page. The list is not complete purely a work in progress but if in the list is a reasonably accurate portrayal of the place in mid Georgian times. Ros King

The Antiquarian Repertory,

The Antiquities of England and Wales

2."The Antiquities of Scotland," 2 vols. 4to and 8vo.(1789-91).

Contents list

3. "The Antiquities of Ireland," 2 vols. 4to and 8vo, a posthumous work, edited by Mr. Ledwich, 1794.

4. "A Treatise on ancient Armour and Weapons," 1785, 4to.

5. "A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue," 1785, 8vo.

6. "Military Antiquities; being a history of the English Army from the Conquest to the present Time," 1786, 1788, 2 vols. 4to.

7. "The History of Dover Castle, by the rev. William Darell," 1786, 4to.

8."A Provincial Glossary, with a Collection of local Proverbs and popular Superstitions," 1788, 8vo.

9. "Rules for drawing Caricatures," 1788, 8vo.

10. " Supplement to the Treatise on ancient Armour and Weapons," 1789, 4to.

11."A guide to the Health, Beauty, Honour, and Riches," being a collection of humorous advertisements, pointing out the means to obtain those blessings; with a suitable introductory preface, 8vo.

12. "The Olio, a collection of Essays," jests, small pieces of poetry, all highly characteristic of Mr. Grose, but the collection was not made by him, and we suspect all the contents are not from his pen; 1793, 8vo.[1]

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