The Compleat English Gentleman is a conduct book by Daniel Defoe (1660–1731), which the author left unfinished at his death in April 1731 in the form of a holograph manuscript together with a corrected proof sheet (a sample of printed pages with markings). Defoe had been working on it since at least 1728, and an extant letter to the printer John Watts, dated 10 September 1729, shows that Defoe, while “Exceeding ill”, was shortening and revising the text (Defoe, Correspondence, 874). Its non-completion can probably be attributed to a combination of the health and financial challenges that afflicted Defoe in his final years. The manuscript, now in the British Library (Add. MS. 32555), contains another work in progress, Of Royall Education. It was acquired by the British Museum in 1885 from the collection of James...
2134 words
Citation: Seager, Nicholas. "The Complete English Gentleman". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 September 2025 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=28812, accessed 09 June 2026.]
