Nouvelle Carte d’Angleterre, d’Ecosse et d’Irlande, avec instructions pour connoitre les differents etats de la couronne d’Angleterre en Europe, Asie, Afrique, et Amerique

Description

Henri Chatelain, a French cartographer and publisher, created this notable map entitled Nouvelle Carte d’Angleterre during the early years of the 18th century. The map was part of an extensive cartographic opus, Chatelain’s Atlas Historique, which was published in several volumes between 1705 and 1720. The Nouvelle Carte d’Angleterre provides a detailed depiction of England, Wales, and parts of Scotland and Ireland. A short stretch of the French coast is also included in the map, though this is of lesser import. Throughout, internal divisions are clearly delineated by county lines and toponymic labels. Notable cities such as London, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Cardiff (among many others) are all depicted. Features such as rivers, lakes, and road networks provide viewers with a detailed sense of the land’s physiography and infrastructure. Coastal areas are also well-delineated, with important islands such as the Isle of Wight and the Isle of Man patently included.

The intricate copperplate engraving allowed for extensive and precise details to be included in Chatelain’s maps. In addition to ample cartographic detail, Chatelain’s map of Britain also contains a significant number of engraved text boxes and tables abounding with relevant information. There are no less than ten tables and four text boxes. While the latter expound descriptions of England, Ireland, and Scotland, the tables provide detailed coordinates for everything from principalities, towns, and cities shown on the map to a list of English holdings in America. These include the British colonies in New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New England, and the Caribbean. At the top of the composition, the tables are crowned with royal coats of arms for Great Britain, England, Scotland, and Ireland.

Despite being a map of the British Isles, it includes two large insets of the Western and Eastern Hemispheres on either side of Scotland. Most interesting in this regard is the Western Hemisphere, which includes significant cartographic features such as depicting California as an island, as well as a partial coastline of what appears to be New Zealand. The Eastern Hemisphere shows the western part of Australia, although a large southern promontory seems to be an early indication of Tasmania.