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Charles I : a political life

Title
Charles I : a political life / Richard Cust.
ISBN
1315834278 (electronic bk.)
9781315834276 (electronic bk.)
1405859032
9781405859035
Published
Harlow, England : Longman/Pearson, 2007.
Physical Description
1 online resource (xii, 488 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : : color illustrations.)
Local Notes
Access is available to the Yale community.
Notes
Description based on print version record.
Access and use
Access restricted by licensing agreement.
Summary
Charles I was a complex man whose career intersected with some of the most dramatic events in English history. He played a central role in provoking the English Civil War, and his execution led to the only republican government Britain has ever known. Historians have struggled to get him into perspective, veering between outright condemnation and measured sympathy. Richard Cust shows that Charles I was not 'unfit to be a king', emphasising his strengths as a party leader and conviction politician, but concludes that, none the less, his prejudices and attitudes, and his mishandling of political crises did much to bring about a civil war in Britain. He argues that ultimately, after the war, Charles pushed his enemies into a position where they had little choice but to execute him.
Was Charles I unfit to be a king? This major up-to-date biography of Charles I, assesses his contribution to the politics of the era of the English Civil War and emphasises his qualities, and weaknessess as a king. The first full length biography of Charles I to be published for over twenty years ; Endorsed by Barry Coward, author of 'The Stuart Age' ; Extremely popular period of history - will be of interest to the thousands of re-enactors involved in societies such as the 'Sealed Knot' ; Loads of extra interest in period due to current Channel 4 series of programmes on Civil War and 2003 film 'To Kill a King' ; Explores developments in Scotland & Ireland as well as England ; Written by an established author on early Stuart politics. This is the first major political biography which takes full account of the mass of recent scholarship on the English Civil War and explores the complexity of Charles' s character as a politician. It sets out to challenge recent assessments of Charles as someone ' unfit to be king', and emphasises his strengths as a party leader and conviction politician. These characteristics, along with his misjudgement and mishandling of crises, played a critical role in the causes of the English Civil War. It is an accessible narrative of the high politics of Charles' s reign as a whole, exploring developments in Scotland and Ireland as well as England. It connects this politics with religious conflict, court culture, Renaissance ideas of monarchy and the emergence of a ' public sphere' of news and political debate, while also offering a reassessment of topicssuch as the origins of the Personal Rule, the political role of Queen Henrietta Maria and Charles' s performance as a military commander. Richard Cust has been a History lecturer, at Birmingham University for twenty five years and over this time he has published a series of books and articles which have helped to set the agenda for a 'post revisionist' account of early Stuart politics. His books include "The Forced Loan and English Politics 1626-1628" and "Conflict in Early Stuart England" (edited with Ann Hughes), another Longman publication
Variant and related titles
Taylor & Francis. EBA 2024-2025.
Other formats
Original
Format
Books / Online
Language
English
Added to Catalog
October 04, 2024
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references.
Contents
A political apprenticeship, 1600-1622
Charles and Buckingham, 1623-1628
The personal rule, 1629-1640
Charles and the British problem, 1625-1638
Charles and the outbreak of civil war, 1639-1642
Charles and civil war, 1642-1649.
Citation

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