Gustavus Vasa, the deliverer of his country. A tragedy. As it was to have been acted at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane
London: R. Dodsley, 1739. First edition, regular issue, without the list of subscribers and with the price of "one shilling and six-pence" under the imprint on the title-p. 8vo, pp. viii, [2], 81, [4]; modern brown paper-covered boards, leather label on spine; title-p. browned and with a small chip at the top, else very good. Brooke's play was never performed because it was the first play banned under the Licensing Act of 1739. Rothschild 496 citing the large paper issue of the subscriber's issue: "The refusal to license Gustavus Vasa for the stage inspired Johnson's satirical pamphlet, A Compleat Vindication of the Licensers of the Stage" (1739); see Chapman & Hazen, p. 124, and Fleeman, pp. 42-43. Item #32404
Price: $50.00
