Discover the incredible life of John Ogilby, shipwreck survivor, royal conspirator, and map maker in the first major biography of this forgotten British legend
Four hundred years ago, every barrister had to dance because dancing put them in harmony with the universe. John Ogilby's first job, in 1612, was to teach them. By the 1670s, he was Charles II's Royal Cosmographer, creating beautiful measured drawings that placed roads on maps for the first time. During the intervening years, Ogilby had travelled through fire and plague, war and shipwreck; had been an impresario in Dublin, a poet in London, a soldier and sea captain, as well as a secret agent, publisher and scientific geographer. The world of his youth had been blown up and turned upside down. Beset by danger, he carefully concealed his biography in codes and cyphers, which meant that the truth about his life has remained unknown… until today.
In this enlightening book, Alan Ereira brings a fascinating hidden history to light, and reveals that Ogilby's celebrated Britannia is far more than a harmless road atlas: it is, rather, filled with secrets designed to serve a conspiracy of kings and England’s undoing. The Nine Lives of John Ogilby is the story of a remarkable man, and of a covert journey which gave birth to the modern world.
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‘A spectacular book with a wide range of insights to the 17th Century’
" - Terry Jones
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Ereira is justly proud… situates Britannia in its political context, connecting it to Charles II’s military purposes and need to crush rebellion'
" - Guardian
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‘Compelling... a terrific subject for a biography... Ereira’s enthusiasm is infectious [and his] generous biography conveys both the irrepressible energy and the shifty elusiveness of Ogilby.’
" - TLS
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Britannia was created by a cunning Scot, to help the monarch’s absolute ascendancy over the whole of Britain. The secret is finally out.'
" - Scotsman
