1907 Rare First Edition – Church and State in France 1300–1907 by Arthur Galton – Historical Study of Catholic Church & French State – Antiquarian Hardback with Ecclesiastical Provenance
 
Author: Arthur Galton
Publication Year: 1907 (First Edition)
Publisher: Edward Arnold, 41 & 43 Maddox Street, Bond Street, London
Printer: Horace Hart, Printer to the University
Binding: Dark green cloth hardback with gilt lettering to spine
Provenance: Ex-Hudson Memorial Library, Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Albans; Ex libris plate of Colloquium Episcoporum Apud Thesin (London, Southwark, St Albans, Chelmsford dioceses), dated 1915; Bookseller’s sticker (Thomas Baker, Newman Street, London)
Dimensions: Approx. 22.8 × 15 × 3.9 cm
Pagination: xxiv + 290 pages + 16-page publisher’s catalogue
Weight: Approx. 786g
 
Description
 
This scarce 1907 first edition of Church and State in France 1300–1907 by Arthur Galton is a significant historical study exploring the evolving relationship between the Catholic Church and the French state across six centuries. Covering medieval ecclesiastical influence, monarch-papacy conflicts, the rise of Protestantism, and 19th-century secularisation, it remains a key scholarly reference.
 
Arthur Howard Galton (1852–1921) was an English clergyman, writer, and scholar. Educated at Cambridge and Oxford, he worked as a literary critic and editor before serving as Vicar of Edenham, Lincolnshire. He spent several years in Australia as private secretary to the Governor of New South Wales. His works range from literary studies to translations of Alfred Loisy, but he is best known for Church and State in France, 1300–1907 (1907), a study of the shifting relationship between the French state and the Catholic Church.
 
Provenance
 
This volume bears significant ecclesiastical provenance:
Hudson Memorial Library, Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Albans – Founded in the late 19th century, this library served the cathedral clergy and community, housing theological and historical works. It was named after George Hudson, a notable benefactor of St Albans Cathedral.
Ex libris plate of Colloquium Episcoporum Apud Thesin – The Latin translates loosely as “Conference of Bishops at the Thesis” (or possibly “at the Place of Assembly”). The plate is dated 1915 and lists the dioceses of London, Southwark, St Albans, and Chelmsford, suggesting it was connected to a formal meeting or ongoing association of bishops from these four English dioceses during the First World War.
Such gatherings were relatively rare and often marked by the exchange or gifting of theological and historical works among church leaders.
The bookplate itself is finely printed, featuring an ecclesiastical shield with cross and mitre motifs, adding to its visual and collectible appeal.
Bookseller’s label – Thomas Baker, Newman Street, London – a specialist theological and ecclesiastical bookseller active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
This combination of provenance – cathedral library, episcopal conference bookplate, and specialist bookseller – strongly associates the volume with the Anglican Church’s intellectual life in the early 20th century.
 
Condition
 
The dark green cloth binding is robust and intact, with light rubbing, edge and corner wear, small marks, and minor cloth splits at spine ends. Gilt spine lettering remains clear. Inside, pages are lightly tanned, with darker tanning on the endpapers. There is light foxing on the pages (heavier at the front), unevenly cut edges (typical of the era), and occasional small nicks from original page separation. There is a small unobtrusive hole to the lower margin of pp. 39–40. Binding is generally sound, with only light cracking to gutters in places and a few marginally loosened pages (still secure).
Library ink stamp to front free endpaper, ex libris plate to front pastedown, and a small amount of pen and minor pencil notes on the title page. The book remains complete, with all 290 pages plus publisher’s catalogue.