William Faden


William Faden was an English cartographer and a publisher of maps. He was the royal geographer to King George III. He replaced Thomas Jefferys in that role.
The title of "geographer to the king" was given to various people in the 18th century, including John Senex, Herman Moll, Emmanuel Bowen and Thomas Jeffreys. All of these men, including William Faden, were engravers and publishers, not scholars or academics. Their part was to publish and supply maps to the crown and parliament.

Life and works

William Faden was born as son of the printer Willam Faden senior. He self printed the North American Atlas in 1777, and "...it became the most important atlas chronicling the Revolution's battles." There were 29 maps in the atlas, and they included detailed battle maps drawn by eyewitnesses.
William Faden was also the publisher of the periodical "the Public Ledger" or "The Daily Register" in London.
A list of the English county maps printed by William Faden is also given in one of his biographies.

Gallery of maps