‎MOLESWORTH, ROBERT.‎
‎An Account of Denmark as it was in the Year of 1692. The Third Edition Corrected.‎

‎London, Timothy Goodwin,1694. 8vo. In contemporary full sprinkled calf with four raised bands. Binding quite worn, especially spine and capitals. Internally generally nice and clean. A restored tear to back free endpaper. (40), 246 pp.‎

Reference : 63394

‎Third edition of Molesworth's notorious attack on Danish absolutism. Molesworth's work was influential in the burgeoning field of political science in the period. He made a case for comparative political analysis, comparing the political situation of a country to the health of an individual a disease, he reasoned, can only be diagnosed by comparing it to its instantiation in other people. Robert Molesworth (1656-1725) was an English diplomat and author. He was envoy to the Danish court from 1689 to 1692 and did not get on well with the ruling elite. In 1694 he published the An Account of Denmark as it was in the Year 1692, containing strong criticism of the Danish autocracy, especially of the army, the church and the enslaved position of the population. It highlighted the English electoral constitution as an attractive alternative and was thus a Whig publication that, together with other similar ones, came to influence later American ideas about independence. The book went through several editions and in several languages, and the Danish government supported several counter-publications (Bregnsbo 2026). Bregnsbo, Michael: Robert Molesworth in Lex på lex.dk. Accessed 3rd of august 2026 fra https://lex.dk/Robert_Molesworth‎