Following on from the completion of his county map series in 1579, Christopher Saxton set about producing a large-scale map of England and Wales. Published in 1583 in twenty sheets at a scale of about 8 miles to the inch, only one example survives in the Birmingham Public Library. The engraving is believed to be by Augustine Ryther, who produced the earlier general map for Saxton’s atlas.

Saxton (c.1542–c.1610) was born in the West Riding of Yorkshire. While the details of his early life are sketchy, it is known that he attended Cambridge University, and in 1570 he was apprenticed as a map maker to John Rudd, vicar of Dewsbury. Rudd was a keep mapmaker himself and no doubt influenced the young Saxton who was certainly working for him by 1570. Saxton began work on his county maps in about 1574. In 1577 he received letters patent from Elizabeth I protecting his maps against plagiarism for the next ten years. As well as the Queen’s protection, Saxton also enjoyed the patronage of Thomas Seckford, Master of the Queen’s Requests.

The earliest known modern map of Britain was by George Lily and printed in Rome in 1546. Just 15 known examples survive. William Cecil, Lord Burghley, of the Queen’s Privy Council, through the auspices of Seckford, encouraged Saxton to map England and Wales. England was growing as a power and Burghley understood the importance of mapping to the running of the country.

The wall map contained improvements over the county maps including corrected spelling of placenames and most notably and improved depiction of the Isle of Wight. It also included a scale of latitude which was lacking in the earlier general maps. Shirley notes that the map records the old English mile of 10 furlongs. The new 8 furlong mile was not confirmed by statute until 1593.

The map had significant influence being drawn upon by Gerard Mercator for his regional maps of 1595, Wenceslaus Hollar for the six-sheet Quartermaster’s Map of 1644, and John Adams’ twelve-sheet map of 1677. Currently we are aware of 10 different states or issues of the map. As with the atlas they first came into the hands of William Web c.1642. Then through J. Cade and William Morgan in 1678 to Philip Lea who issued it over several years. This was followed by his widow Anne Lea c.1720 and the Bowles family into the mid-1700s. Any state of the map is very rare. Evans & Lawrence (1978) p. 35; Hind (1952-64) I pp. 100-103 plate 49; Shirley (1991) 137; Skelton (1974) ‘Saxton’s Survey of England and Wales’.