George Faulkner

George Faulkner (c. 1703 – 30 August 1775) was one of the most important Irish publisher and booksellers. He forged a publishing relationship with Jonathan Swift and parlayed that fame into an extensive trade. He was also deeply involved with the argument over copyright infringement and piracy, both creating and fighting "Irish editions."

Faulkner's year of birth, which is not certain, was probably 1703; his place of birth is unknown. He served his apprenticeship from 1717 to 1724 in Dublin, later setting up his own business. In the 1720s, while travelling frequently to London, he became a friend of the London printer, William Bowyer. In 1730, he suffered gangrene in one leg and had to have it amputated. It is known that he had a wife, the widow Mary Taylor.

Swift's usual printer during the 1720s was Benjamin Motte in London, but Faulkner published Swift's Drapier's Letters in 1725. The details of how and why Faulkner got this assignment are obscure. Both men were in London in 1726, but, again, there is no direct evidence that the two were associated very clearly. However, by 1730, Swift and Faulkner were friends, and Faulkner's Dublin Journal began to both favor Swift's causes and take up Swift's style after this time.

In 1732, Faulkner published Queries in Dublin Journal and was brought to the House of Lords to answer charges for doing so. The piece had been part of Swift's Considerations upon Two Bills Relating to the Clergy, and Swift admired Faulkner's courage. Swift must have discussed giving Faulkner an edition of his Works, as Faulkner himself attested, because in 1733 Faulkner advertised a subscription for the multi-volume work. Motte objected, and Swift claimed that the edition was without authority. However, when the edition appeared in 1735, Swift backed it and attested to its validity. Faulkner claimed that he and Swift had gone over every page in the Works, that Swift would read each page to two hired men who were by, and he would correct each line until the language was perfectly understandable to them. Nevertheless, Motte got an injunction forbidding sale of Works in London.

Faulkner was Swift's Irish publisher for the rest of the latter's life. This association made Faulkner's name and generated a substantial income for him. He thereafter stayed in Dublin and made his visits to London much more brief.

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