This intricately detailed map by John Armstrong depicts the island of Menorca, one of the Balearic Islands off the coast of Spain. A strategic island in the western Mediterranean, Menorca was occupied by the British several times in the 18th century. Below the title, a note provides historical context: "Minorca was Conquered upon the Spaniards in 1708 by General Stanhope, and Ceded to Great Britain by the Peace of Utrecht in 1713. It was taken by the French in 1756, and Restored in 1763." The map shows political divisions, place names, and topographical detail. An inset map at top left covers Spain, Portugal, the Barbary Coast, and the western Mediterranean. Another inset at top right zooms in on Mahon and its surroundings, with a key that identifies 26 locations of interest. Views of Mahon and Fort St. Philip (or St. Philip's Castle) adorn the bottom corners. In the decades preceding the publication of this map, Fort St. Philip was captured during both the Seven Years' War (when the French seized it from the British in 1756) and the Anglo-Spanish War (when the British ceded it to Spain in 1781). This map first appeared in the 1799 edition of A New Universal Atlas Exhibiting All the Empires...

References: Phillips (Atlases) #3534-23; Shirley (BL Atlases) T.LAU-1c #20.

Condition: B+

A nice impression with a short tear, a small chip in the inset at top left, and some separations along the centerfold, all of which have been closed on verso with archival materials.