This was originally posted on Vivendo de Lembranças, a page which I no longer maintain. There may be small edits or changes below. (C) Copyright Cliff Hansen, 2022.
Thomas Kitchin (whose name is also sometimes spelled “Kitchen”) engraved many maps of Cabo Verde and the world, including this 1744 map in my collection. It was largely copied from a map by Captain George Roberts, though he does admit to that in the map’s caption. (This was actually an interesting story, which you can read more about in my post on Captain Roberts.)
itchin was a prominent engraver, cartographer, and hydrographer to the king of England. Because of this and his prolific production, his works were quite common and have had a lasting influence on travel and literature.
He was born in Southwark, England, the oldest of several children. Between 1732 and 1739 he learned the art of map engraving as an apprentice to Emanuel Bowen, whose daughter Sarah he married in December 1739.
Kitchin was working independently as of 1741 and had his own apprentices during this time including his son, Thomas Bowen Kitchin as of 1754. The next year, Kitchin’s engraving firm was located at Holborn Hill and produced engravings not just of maps but also of portraits and caricatures. Several of his portraits are available here, but sadly I was unable to find a self-portrait of Kitchin himself. (If you find one, please provide a link in the comments below!)
He completed many of the most influential maps of his time including maps of North America, Scotland, and large-scale maps of England. His John Mitchell map of North America was used heavily in the production of the Paris and Versailles peace treaties. Kitchin wrote a book called “The Present State of the West-Indies: Containing an Accurate Description of What Parts are Possessed by the Several Powers in Europe” which was published in 1778. The University of Missouri’s website provides a good description of his work: “As an engraver, Kitchin[‘s] work was clear and precise, with traces of the English rococo, an art style marked by asymmetry, naturalism, and especially by shell-like forms, in his cartouches and decorative touches.”
Although he has been accused of plagiarising many of his works, this increased his productivity and allowed more people to view his works. I am uncertain if plagiarism is the correct word, however, since the one map I own by him admits that he was basing his work on a previous one, and I feel like most maps should fall into the category of public domain, despite the expense and efforts at achieving them.
In my earlier article on Captain Roberts, I briefly mentioned stumbling across a line about Kitchin trying to create a “General atlas describing the whole universe”. Obviously, I couldn’t let that one drop, and I found that this work’s full title is:
Kitchin’s general atlas, describing the whole universe: Being a complete collection of the most approved maps extant; corrected with the greatest care, and augmented from the last edition of D’Anville and Robert, with many improvements by other eminent geographers, engraved on sixty-two plates, comprising thirty seven maps. Containing, 1. 2. A general map of the world, in two hemispheres, with the tracks and all new discoveries of Capt. James Cook, and other circumnavigators; with marginal delineations of the most interesting particulars in the solar, starry, and mundane system. 3. 4. Europe divided into its kingdoms, states, republics, &c. with descriptive tables, and many additions and improvements. 5. 6. England and Wales, drawn from the most accurate surveys. 7. 8. Scotland, or North Britain, compiled from the best surveys, and regulated by the latest observations. 9. 10. Ireland, with all its divisions, post roads and canals. 11. The Netherlands, or ten provinces. 12. The seven United provinces, with the canals and great roads. 13. France, divided into provinces, with the post roads. 14. New map of France, in eighty-three departments. 15. Spain and Portugal, from the latest observations. 16. Italy, with the Islands of Sicily, Sardinia, &c. 17. The Island and kingdom of Corsica, ceded to Great Britain in 1794. 18. 19. The Empire of Germany, with the Kingdom of Prussia, &c. 20. Switzerland, divided into the thirteen cantons, &c. 21. The Northern states, comprehending the Kingdoms of Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. 22. The Kingdom of Poland, with its dismembered provinces &c. 24. Turkey in Europe, with all its provinces and adjacent countries. 25. The whole Russian Empire, in Europe and Asia. 26. 27. Asia, and its islands, divided into its empires, kingdoms, states, regions, &c. 28. 29. The East-Indies, with the European settlements, and the high roads, &c. 30. 31. Africa, with all its states, kingdoms, republics, regions, islands, &c. also an historical description, and a chart of the gold coast. 32. 33. The whole continent of America, divided into north and south, and West-Indies. 34. 35. North America, with the West-India Islands, divided according to the preliminary articles of peace, signed at versailles, 20th Jan. 1783, wherein are particularly distinguished the United States, &c. 36. 37. South America, with several improvements and additions, also a chart of Falkland’s Islands
https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/8757749
If you want to see it, it’s mostly available for student access only, though I did find some nice scans here, or you can purchase it for only $28,000.
When asking myself why he made this particular map, I feel the answer is likely merely completeness. Though he did several maps of the islands of Cabo Verde, including a few I hope we can acquire, he doesn’t appear to have had any particular interest in the archipelago on its own. To him the islands were part of the world, or more specifically, “the whole universe”, and that was what he was trying to map for his books and for his king. I can forgive Kitchin for tracing the outline of the islands themselves from Roberts, but the fact that he even traced the compass rose is a sign of either laziness or rushing through the project to start the next one. There’s a long and beautiful tradition of cartographers making playful compass roses, but while Kitchin updated many place names, he was otherwise interested in as few stylistic liberties as possible.
In 1773, Kitchin became the king’s hydrographer, a position that was later passed on to his son. Kitchin died in June of 1784 and was buried in St. Alban’s Cathedral. To the best of my knowledge, he never set foot in the Cabo Verde islands.
Despite his maps’ ages and the fact that we have more accurate ones now, as authentic works from his time period, they do continue to influence modern works, such as this stamp featuring a reproduction of the map in my collection:
On the “about” page of CapeVerde.com, it was a colorized thumbnail of Kitchin’s work that they chose to include on the page, clearly showing the lasting effect this map has had on the archipelago’s self-image.
Do you know anything else interesting about Kitchin? Please comment below.