Ainsworth 16 Volume Set 1800's, Cruickshank Illustrations. This is a sixteen volume set of books written by William Harrison Ainsworth in the 1800's and illustrated by George Cruikshank and Hablot K. Browne, two of the most celebrated illustrators of the period. William Harrison Ainsworth (1805 - 1882) was an English historical novelist born in Manchester. He trained as a lawyer, but the legal profession held no attraction for him, and he briefly tried the publishing business, but soon gave it up and devoted himself to journalism and literature. His first success as a writer came with "Rookwood" in 1834; a stream of 39 novels followed, the last of which appeared in 1881. The books here were all published by George Routledge, and they are 3/4 bound, with five raised bands, six compartments with gilt titles on black and orange-brown labels and gilt decorations on the spines, marbled covers, marbled endpapers, frontispieces before each title page, they are undated, except for one title (1897), the top edges are gilt, in fine bindings by Morrell and Charles E. Lauriat, and numerous illustrations by George Cruikshank and Hablot K. Browne, who was a favorite of Charles Dickens for illustrating Dickens' own books. The titles in chronological order are: Rookwood (1834), Crichton (1837), Jack Sheppard (1839), The Tower of London (1840), Guy Fawkes, Or The Gunpowder Treason (1841), Old St. Paul's: A Tale of the Plague and the Fire (1841), The Miser's Daughter (1842), Windsor Castle (1843), Auriol (1850), The Lancashire Witches (1849), The Flitch of Bacon (1854), The Star-Chamber (1854), Mervyn Clitheroe (1857), The Spendthrift (1857), Ovingdean Grange (1860), and Boscobel (1871). Jack Sheppard was a novel about a famous outlaw, and Jack Sheppard, Guy Fawkes, Old St Paul's, Windsor Castle, and The Lancashire Witches are regarded as Ainsworth's most successful novels. The ones illustrated here by George Cruikshank are Rookwood, Jack Sheppard, The Tower of London, Guy Fawkes, The Miser's Daughter, and Windsor Castle, and the books illustrated here by Hablot K. Browne are Crichton, Old St. Paul's, Auriol, Mervyn Clitheroe, The Spendthrift, and Ovingdean Grange. There is one illustrated by Phiz, but that was the pen name for Hablot K. Browne. Sir John Gilbert illustrated a couple of titles here too. The books are 8vo. and measure 8 7/8 x 6 in. wide, and are in very good condition. The bindings are tight, the pages and text are very clean, with no browning or foxing that we could detect, and just light offset from some of the illustrations. The heels and crowns are in very good condition, and there is just light rubbing at some of the tips, and that is it for wear. An attractive set for anyone who is an Ainsworth fan or a Cruikshank or Hablot K. Browne fan, and if you don't know who George Cruikshank or Hablot K. Browne was, you're missing out on great artwork. #42 #5000