Lisbon, n.pr., 1757.. FIRST and ONLY EDITION. 4°, disbound, loosely mounted in folio-size cardboard portfolio. Woodcut vignette on title page. Light browning; 4 cm. tear in blank lower outer corner of title page. Uncut, in good to very good condition. 7, (1) pp. *** FIRST and ONLY EDITION of this rare account of a naval battle in the Bay of Biscay during the Seven Years' War. The Duc d'Aquitaine had stopped at Lisbon on her way home from India. On the final leg of her journey home she met two English ships in the Bay of Biscay and was forced to surrender. This account briefly describes the two-hour action and the number of dead and wounded on each side. The Seven Years’ War, 1756-1763, was waged in Europe, North America (where it began in 1754, and is known as the French and Indian War), Central and South America, West Africa, India (the Third Carnatic War), and the Philippines. Prussia, Great Britain, and (from 1761) Portugal were allied against France, Austria, Spain (from 1761), Russia (until 1762), Sweden (1757-1762), Saxony, and the Mughal Empire (from 1757). Aside from venting the ongoing antagonism amongst the Bourbons, Habsburgs, and Hohenzollerns, the countries were battling for overseas colonies and commercial superiority. As a result of the war, Great Britain annexed Canada, much North American territory west of the Alleghenies, and Florida, and became dominant in the Indian subcontinent. France transferred Louisiana to Spain. Prussia gained influence at the expense of the Holy Roman Empire, which is often considered to be the starting point for the rise of the modern German state. Removal of the French threat to the thirteen North American Colonies, and British attempts to obtain revenues from these colonies to compensate for wartime expenditures were major factors in the movement for Independence culminating in the American Revolution. *** Coimbra, Miscelâneas 1044, 1252. Not in Innocêncio or Fonseca, Pseudónimos. Not in Azevedo-Samodães. Not in JCB, Portuguese and Brazilian Books. Porbase locates two copies at the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal and one at the Biblioteca Central da Marinha. Jisc repeats the copies at the British Library and the National Maritime Museum. NUC: MH.
