Frontispiece
The frontispiece of the book is an engraving of Prince William, Duke of Gloucester. He was the son of Queen Anne, a daughter of James II, and the longest surviving child that she had. Sadly, however, he died from smallpox on July 30, 1700, when he was only eleven years old.
Basil Kennett was a devout Protestant—his father was a rector and vicar for his family's local parish and his brother, White Kennett, was a Protestant bishop and scholar—and a supporter of The Glorious Revolution, which had occurred only seven years before this book was written. This event exiled the Catholic monarch, James II, and put the joint-monarchy of William and Mary in power, both of whom were Protestant. Their rule, however, was different than any other monarch of the period because they accepted the English Bill of Rights, which restricted the capabilities of the monarchy and gave more control of the country to Parliament. Kennett was a supporter of this new government and dedicated the book to the Prince because he was third in line to the throne, and his reign would have cemented the new Protestant line of monarchs.