in february 1796 baxter circulated proposals for "a new and impartial history of england" written by him and ‘assisted by several gentlemen, distinguished friends to liberty and a parliamentary reform’. the work was dedicated to the london corresponding society, 'to the numerous political societies in great-britain and to the people at large.it was published in weekly parts during 1796 and early 1797. this work was intended as an antidote to david hume’s history, to provide englishmen with 'a perpetual memento of their rights and privileges.' the first thirty-three numbers (to 1689) were largely an abridgement and plagiarism of hume, although with revised interpretations of certain key political events such as magna carta, or the glorious revolution. the remaining 17 numbers were baxter's own work and brought the whole story up to date. baxter has been criticised for not acknowledging hume's large contribution in his preface, and only mentioning him in the text in order to criticise his interpretations.