Moses Pitt (c. 1639–1697) was a bookseller and printer known for the production of his ''Atlas'' of the world, a project supported by the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

, and in particular by

Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren PRS FRS (; – ) was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician-physicist. He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches ...

. He is also known as the author of ''The Cry of the Oppressed'' (1691), an account of the conditions in which imprisoned debtors lived in debtors' jails in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. __TOC__

Early life

Pitt originated from

St Teath St Teath (; kw, Eglostedha) is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. Geography The village is situated approximately three miles (5 km) southwest of Camelford and seven miles (11 km) northeast o ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, and began publishing in 1667 from his base in

Little Britain, London Little Britain is a street in the City of London running from St. Martin's Le Grand in the east to West Smithfield in the west. It is situated in the Aldersgate and Farringdon Within wards. Postman's Park is also bounded by Little Britain. H ...

Publications

His work was characterised by its learned content and included authors such as

Robert Boyle Robert Boyle (; 25 January 1627 – 31 December 1691) was an Anglo-Irish natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, alchemist and inventor. Boyle is largely regarded today as the first modern chemist, and therefore one of the founders of ...

and

Gilbert Burnet Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch, French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Burnet was highly respected as a cleric, a preacher, an academic, ...

. His ''Atlas'' was initially intended to be 12 volumes and he continued to undertake other work for the Royal Society. However rising costs, estimated by Pitt at £1000 per volume, contributed to his eventual bankruptcy and only four volumes were ever produced. The second volume had as frontispiece a noted engraved portrait of Queen

Catherine of Braganza Catherine of Braganza ( pt, Catarina de Bragança; 25 November 1638 – 31 December 1705) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England, List of Scottish royal consorts, Scotland and Ireland during her marriage to Charles II of England, ...

, by

Edward Le Davis Edward Le Davis ( fl. 1671–1691) was a Welsh engraver and art dealer. Born Edward Davis, he spent some time working in France, and later prefixed "Le" to his surname. Life Davis was apprenticed to David Loggan, but got on badly with Loggan's wi ...

. In Ireland

William Molyneux William Molyneux FRS (; 17 April 1656 – 11 October 1698) was an Irish writer on science, politics and natural philosophy. He is noted as a close friend of fellow philosopher John Locke, and for proposing Molyneux's Problem, a thought exper ...

collaborated with

Roderic O'Flaherty Roderick O'Flaherty ( ga, Ruaidhrí Ó Flaithbheartaigh; 1629–1718 or 1716) was an Irish historian. Biography He was born in County Galway and inherited Moycullen Castle and estate. O'Flaherty was the last ''de jure'' Lord of Iar Connacht, ...

to collect material for the ''Atlas''. While Pitt's financial crisis lead to cancellation of the project, much valuable work on early Irish history was collected. Molyneux and O'Flaherty struck a friendship and Molyneux assisted when the latter's treatise ''Ogygia'' was published in London in 1685. As a result of the Atlas project, Pitt was declared bankrupt. He was taken to the Fleet Prison, and remained there, or in the

King's Bench Prison The King's Bench Prison was a prison in Southwark, south London, England, from medieval times until it closed in 1880. It took its name from the King's Bench court of law in which cases of defamation, bankruptcy and other misdemeanours were hea ...

, for seven years. In 1691, he published ''The Cry of the Oppressed: Being a True and Tragical Account of the Unparallel'd Sufferings of Multitudes of Poor Imprison'd Debtors In Most of the Gaols in England'', a moving appeal on behalf of prisoners for debt across the country.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitt, Moses 1630s births English booksellers People from St Teath English prisoners and detainees 1697 deaths Inmates of Fleet Prison 17th-century English businesspeople People imprisoned for debt

Early life

Publications

See also

References