Westmorlandia Lancastria, Cestria, Caernarvan, Denbigh, Flint, Merionidh, Montgomery, Salopia, cum Insulis Mania et Anglesey.

Title

Westmorlandia Lancastria, Cestria, Caernarvan, Denbigh, Flint, Merionidh, Montgomery, Salopia, cum Insulis Mania et Anglesey.

Description

Map shows the traditional counties of England: Westmorland, Cumberland (Cumbria), Lancashire, North Wales, Isle of Man. Also features a title cartouche, mile markers and a sailing ship.

ca. 1650

Artist

Janssonius/Mercator-Hondius, H. (1588-1664)

Johannes Janssonius (Jansson),( 1588- 1664) Amsterdam was born in Arnhem, the son of Jan Janszoon the Elder,a publisher and bookseller. In 1612 he married Elisabeth de Hondt, the daughter of Jodocus Hondius. He produced his first maps in 1616 of France and Italy. In 1623 Janssonius owned a bookstore in Frankfurt am Main, later also in Danzig, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Berlin, Königsberg, Geneva and Lyon. In the 1630s he formed a partnership with his brother in law Henricus Hondius, and together they published atlases as Mercator/Hondius/Janssonius. Under the leadership of Janssonius the Hondius Atlas was steadily enlarged. Renamed Atlas Novus, it had three volumes in 1638, one fully dedicated to Italy. 1646 a fourth volume came out with English County Maps, a year after a similar issue by Willem Blaeu. Janssonius' maps are similar to those of Blaeu, and he is often accused of copying from his rival, but many of his maps predate those of Blaeu and/or covered different regions. By 1660, at which point the atlas bore the appropriate name Atlas Major, there were 11 volumes, containing the work of about a hundred credited authors and engravers. It included a description of most of the cities of the world (Townatlas), of the waterworld (Atlas Maritimus in 33 maps), and of the Ancient World (60 maps). The eleventh volume was the Atlas of the Heavens by Andreas Cellarius. Editions were printed in Dutch, Latin, French, and a few times in German.

Historical Description

The Isle of Man is a self-governing crown dependency in the Irish Sea between England and Northern Ireland. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is represented by a Lieutenant Governor. Foreign relations and defence are the responsibility of the Lord of Mann, however in practice are handled by the British Government. The first residents were hunter gatherers and fishermen. The Neolithic Period marked the beginning of farming, and megalithic monuments began to appear such as Cashtal yn Ard. Vikings arrived at the end of the 8th century. They established Tynwald and introduced many land divisions that still exist.In 1266 King Magnus VI of Norway ceded the islands to Scotland in the Treaty of Perth. In 1290 King Edward I of England sent Walter de Huntercombe to take possession of Mann.English rule was delegated to a series of lords and magnates. The Tynwald passed laws concerning the government of the island in all respects and had control over its finances, but was subject to the approval of the Lord of Mann. In 1866, the Isle of Man obtained a nominal measure of Home Rule.