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Colonel John ‘Tinker’ Fox, governor of the Edgbaston garrison, has been studied by several historians in recent years, overturning the older view that he was a radical or an independent force. This edition of the surviving muster rolls of the garrison looks at how a small body of men on the periphery of Parliamentarian territory was organised and equipped from local resources. The muster rolls show that Fox’s unit was improvised and poorly armed, but it was still capable of effective mounted guerrilla actions against their Royalist counterparts, and sometimes operated in the mainstream of military operations in the English Midlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the English Civil War and subsequent Restoration, beekeeping provided a ready set of moral examples for those seeking answers about the 'natural' structure of society. The practice itself also underwent a number of substantial changes, moving from a traditional craft practice to a more knowledge-focused, technologically complex one. The advent of glass-windowed hives in the latter half of the sixteenth century allowed intellectuals from across the political spectrum to directly observe bees as a way of gathering knowledge about how to understand the divine plan and, with that understanding, improve human society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Review article of Words at War: The Contested Language of the English Civil War, edited by Andrew Hadfield and Paul Hammond, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2024, xi + 342 pp., £90 (hardback), ISBN 9780197267622. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the emergence and evolution of the "speech without doors" genre in seventeenth and eighteenth century England, highlighting its role in making parliamentary debates accessible to the public and reshaping political communication. It explores how this genre challenged the traditional boundaries of political discourse, particularly in relation to the privacy and secrecy of parliamentary deliberations, and examines the genre's various forms and influences over time.

The article provides a summary of the book "War for Peace: Genealogies of a Violent Ideal in Western and Islamic Thought" by Murad Idris. The book delves into the complex relationship between peace and war, analyzing the works of ten diverse thinkers such as Plato, Thomas Aquinas, and Immanuel Kant. Idris introduces a unique vocabulary to explore the concept of peace, categorizing it as parasitical, provincial, and polemical. The article summarizes the first three chapters, which examine the ideas of Plato, Abū Naṣr al- Fārābī, Thomas Aquinas, and Desiderius Erasmus. It also discusses how the understanding of law in these thinkers' thoughts privileges peace but disregards non-European spaces and subjects them to non-representation. The text emphasizes the interconnectedness of peace, war, and colonialism, inviting readers to critically question the idealization of peace. Overall, the book offers valuable insights into political theory and peace studies. [Extracted from the article]

Regional book distribution was central to political mobilization in the localities during the English Civil Wars. A contextual approach, building up a picture from print and manuscript sources such as journals, reveals the multiple ways in which books circulated, through a case study of Devon and the south west. In contrast to recent emphasis on activist publishers, these sources highlight the significance of book distribution by puritan clergy. Book distribution in Devon was dominated by the unmatched south-western network of the London publisher Francis Eglesfield (publisher of Robert Herrick's Hesperides). However, the political agency of book distribution lies beyond the conventional book trade with the activities of local ministers, exemplified by John Bond of Exeter, Thomas Larkham of Tavistock, and John Syms of Sheepstor and Plymouth. Their distribution efforts provided multiple routes by which books reached their political audiences and created opportunities for political participation in parish communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the parliamentary press's role in promoting Oliver Cromwell's heroic image during the first civil war, a topic that has received relatively little scholarly attention. Based on a detailed study of contemporary pamphlets and newsbooks, it suggests three phases of press coverage that correspond to the conflict's campaigning seasons. It shows that Cromwell's image in print was greatly assisted by his close relationship with the Independent leadership at Westminster, and their expertise in the manipulation of the press. For them, Cromwell's successes in the field were essential for securing victory. His military reputation, initially nurtured by the civil war press, laid the foundations for his eventual role as lord protector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"India's History, India's Raj" by Robert Eric Frykenberg is a compilation of the author's significant articles that challenge traditional historiography of India. Frykenberg's work focuses on localities and the agency of Indians in shaping India's history, rather than solely attributing it to British colonial rule. The book covers topics such as land tenure, revenue systems, religion, conversion, and the history of Christianity in India. Frykenberg's perspective highlights the role of Indians in the conversion process and emphasizes the connections between British imperial power and local power systems. The book offers a valuable perspective for those interested in understanding the complexities of India's history. [Extracted from the article]

This article delves into the constitutional issue that arose when Boris Johnson, the first Catholic Prime Minister of the UK, recommended a candidate for the position of Bishop. The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 prohibits Catholics from advising the Monarch on appointments in the Church of England, and although this provision has never been used, Johnson's involvement in the appointment raises questions about its violation. The article provides historical context on the relationship between Catholicism and UK politics, as well as the process of appointing bishops in the Church of England. It examines the potential legal implications of Johnson's appointment of the Bishop of Chelmsford in December 2020, considering factors such as his conversion to Catholicism and the interpretation of "advising" the Monarch. While there may be a prima facie case that Johnson committed an offense under section 18, the constitutional implications and consequences of this offense remain uncertain. [Extracted from the article]

The godly lives of Samuel Clarke have traditionally been consulted by historians of early Stuart puritanism for biographical information, particularly anecdotal information, about many of the most famous puritan divines of the age. But, in fact, the lives, and the martyrologies and ecclesiastical histories in which they were contained, were a product of the events of the English civil war and revolution; and more particularly of the disastrous defeat suffered at the end of the 1640s and early 1650s by the Presbyterians at the hands of the Independents and the sects. The first versions of Clarke's collection of lives, which were published between 1650 and 1652, represented a response to that crisis. This article sets out to explain how and why that was, and, having set the lives in that context, and explained the precise apologetic, polemical and edificational purposes they were designed to serve, it concludes by explaining what light such a contextual reading of Clarke's text might shed on the dynamics of the 1650s and the fate therein of the 'national church'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the eve of the Battle of Worcester in 1651, Oliver Cromwell was reputed to have sold his soul to the Devil. This article examines the construction of this legend and places it in the larger context of English Protestant thought about the 'ancient enemy'. It argues that the story originally arose from the circumstances of Cromwell's death on 3 September 1658, but later came to focus on events before the battle seven years earlier. The legend illustrates the persistence of ideas about a physical Devil, despite the emphasis on Satan as an invisible tempter in English theology. This portrayal emerged from the polemics of the 1640s and 1650s and had something in common with the demonization of the royalist commander Prince Rupert. But it drew mainly on earlier stories such as the legend of Johann Faust, which provided the core themes in the tale of Cromwell's supposed diabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the impact of restoration efforts led by architects like John Nash, the commitment to maintaining religious standards despite financial limitations, and the challenges faced in preserving the cathedral's structure and religious practices at St. David's Cathedral from 1793 to 1862. It mentions that this period, attention is given to both physical upkeep and the quality of religious services, reflecting the cathedral chapter's dedication amidst various challenges.

This article is a book review of "Thomas Vaughan and the Rosicrucian revival in Britain, 1648–1666" by Thomas Willard. The book explores the life and writings of Thomas Vaughan, a Welsh hermetic philosopher and alchemist. Willard argues that Vaughan played a significant role in the Rosicrucian revival in Britain, which was made possible by the collapse of print censorship during the English Civil Wars. The book provides a detailed examination of Vaughan's life, writings, and influences, including his interest in secret wisdom and the study of magic. Despite the difficulty of Vaughan's writings, Willard aims to situate him within his historical context and offer insights into his sources, style, and influence. The book is considered the definitive reference work on Vaughan and will be of interest to scholars and students of early modern religion, philosophy, science, and culture. [Extracted from the article]

This article proposes "coalition" as an organizing dynamic for opposition politics that influenced an emergent conception of religious toleration in the English Civil Wars. Through readings of John Milton's Areopagitica (1644), and in comparisons with his immediate forbears and contemporaries, the article distinguishes this conception of toleration from later liberal formulations. In closing, it argues that the formal dynamics of coalition also characterize the marital relationship of Adam and Eve after the fall inMilton's epic Paradise Lost (1667, 1674). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a feminist critique of theories of liberty in two of Thomas Middleton's city tragedies. Expanding on the neo-Roman theories of liberty presented by Quentin Skinner in Liberty Before Liberalism, I connect Middleton's city tragedies to feminist critiques from Mary Nyquist and Ellen Mieksins Wood. Close readings of Women Beware Women and The Revenger's Tragedy reveal connections between Middleton's radical critiques of tyranny in later theories of liberty of the English Civil War. Because Middleton's critiques are explored through both the state and marriage relations, I argue that Middleton exposes the same contradictions of liberty in the institution of the family, providing insight into notions of slavery, servitude, and coercion under the public rule of the sovereign and in the privacy of the home. Reading such contradictions back through Middleton, can, I argue, allow for a better understanding of feminist critiques of such theories of liberty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The errors arose, Blayney explains, because the printers were working so quickly, and the editions were so close together, that heaps from which some quires were gathered contained sheets from both editions. This instance of shared printing becomes particularly important when Blayney discovers that the STC assigned three copies of Grafton's and Whitchurch's earliest editions to both printers. Blayney replaces this with his conjecture that the "authorities" involved Grafton in the 1559 printing while he also views Grafton's edition as a "rival" (commercial) copy. [Extracted from the article]

This paper aims to reconstruct the life, networks, and experiences of the Caroline actor-turned-printer and journalist, John Harris, the pen behind Mercurius Militaris, the most radical newsbook of the civil war period. It provides the first extensive biography of Harris's life, shedding new light on the role of his 'Oxford Press' in New Model Army politics in the crucial summer of 1647. The analysis of Harris's experiences in this paper supports the growing body of scholarship which has sought to redefine the interpretation of 'radicals' and 'radicalism' during the British civil wars; it stresses the importance of fluidity, uncertainty, and compromise in terms of both ideas and allegiances. But it also argues that Harris did undergo a radicalizing process, one which was anchored to his broader experiences and his engagement with print in particular. The collaborative and creative processes of producing printed texts, the amalgamating, compromising, and finessing of different ideas, as well as refining positions in response to other printed texts, forced Harris to think creatively about his own intellectual and political outlook. Harris's experiences, at least, drove him to adopt more and more extreme solutions to the political crises which he perceived to be afflicting the body politic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study identifies common perceptions between Thomas Hobbes' approach to religion with that of Critias the sophist. Despite the distance that separates the social environments within which each of these authors lived and wrote, in their political philosophy we can spot a shared set of concerns, whose importance transcend the historical and political contexts in which the authors lived and wrote: in the state of nature, where no organized commonwealth (or civil society) exists, capable of repressing the innate greed of men and women, savagery and conflict reign supreme; life is threatened by violence and extreme aggression. It is only the state of society that guarantees stability and good life. For both thinkers, belief in immaterial spirits protects the state of society; belief in God promotes obedience to civil law and guarantees human co-existence. In Critias' mind, religion is a necessary means to avert aggression, even when the State's executive powers are unable to punish offenders, using all necessary tools to prevent hostility and conflict. While civil law is the hallmark of peace and stability, belief in a transcendent entity that influences collective and individual modes of living, is an important addition to the pursuit of social peace. A few centuries later, Hobbes (influenced by the misery of the English Civil War) developed viewpoints that also highlight the role of religion in defending social peace. Nonetheless, in Hobbes' mind religion could safeguard stability only (A) when ecclesiastical authorities submit to the judgment of an omnipotent Sovereign and (B) when the coercive mechanisms of the State supress religious pluralism, prohibiting different interpretations of the Bible, which Hobbes himself considered one of the main causes of conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the book "Erocallia Overo dell' Amore e della Bellezza Dialoghi," gifted to poet John Milton by Italian scholar Giovanni Battista Manso. It offers a comprehensive analysis of love and beauty in its various forms. Manso's dialogues delve into the definitions, causes, and ultimate purposes of love and beauty, exploring both their terrestrial and celestial manifestations. Milton's potential engagement with the book is suggested through intertextual echoes in his poetry.

This article explores the historical significance of the town of Taunton in Somerset, particularly during the seventeenth century. Taunton played a key role in political and religious conflicts, such as the English Civil War and the Monmouth Rebellion. The town's loyalty to the monarchy has been inconsistent throughout history, with rebellions against various rulers. Taunton's strategic location and fortifications made it an important center for the Parliamentarian cause during the Civil War. The article highlights the resilience and determination of the townspeople during sieges and the subsequent impact on the town. The Monmouth Rebellion, led by James Scott, also had significant consequences for Taunton. The rebellion was ultimately unsuccessful, resulting in the capture and execution of its leaders. The article emphasizes the historical dissent and sacrifices made by the people of Taunton, despite their reputation for disloyalty. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the irony of history, where past ideologies deemed best become the worst with the emergence of new ones. It focuses on the modernist age, exploring the shift from realism to subjective perspectives and the impact of events like World Wars, reflecting a transition from structured beliefs to an era of individualism and experimentalism.

The poems of Hester Pulter (1605–1678) provide insight into the religion and politics of a woman writing through the English Civil Wars and Republic. This paper focuses on Pulter's use of the apostrophe to the soul and on her abstention from employing disciplinary metaphors that so often characterise devotional poetry. In merging the devotional apostrophe to the soul with complaint, Pulter effectively jettisons the penitential aspects of these approaches, creating a hybrid form in which her body provides comfort to her grieving soul. Pulter thus creates a form of devotional poem that relies on an aesthetics of comfort instead of discipline. By utilising the affordances of the apostrophe – its ability to bring the speaker and its addressee into a relation with one another – Pulter enacts a spiritual unification and in so doing makes implicit claims about the emotional and spiritual efficacy of poetry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why did the countries that first benefited from access to the New World – Castile and Portugal – decline relative to their followers, especially England and the Netherlands? The dominant narrative is that worse initial institutions at the time of the opening of the Atlantic trade explain the Iberian divergence. In this paper, we build a new dataset which allows for a comparison of institutional quality over time. We consider the frequency and nature of parliamentary meetings, the frequency and intensity of extraordinary taxation and coin debasement, and real interest rates together with spreads for public debt. We find no evidence that the political institutions of Portugal and Spain were worse until the English Civil War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay explores the reception of Memoirs of the Life of Colonel Hutchinson as a work supporting 'the people', in Nottinghamshire and nationally, from its first printing in 1806 to the opening of a new 'Rebellion Gallery' in Nottingham Castle. Setting such approaches against the top-down approach of some revisionist historiography, it makes a case for the continuing importance of her analysis of the Revolution. Through close attention to the manuscript of the Memoirs, it shows what care she took in formulating her understanding of the Revolution in Nottinghamshire as an alliance between a section of the gentry and the middle sort, and how her language reveals the tensions inherent in that alliance. A central aim is to show much can be gained by overcoming disciplinary divides between history, genre, gender and textual studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay introduces papers delivered at a conference on Lucy Hutchinson, Nottingham, June 2022. While Hutchinson's 'Elegies' and Order and Disorder are discussed, the majority focus on Memoirs of the Life of Colonel Hutchinson, of which the manuscript was freshly on display in a special gallery in Nottingham Castle. I discuss the interdisciplinary range of the papers, from local and military history to European intellectual history, from gender theory to the study of manuscript collations, which together throw much light on Hutchinson's writings, and will open the way to further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

François Guizot (1787–1874), who served as prime minister under Louis Philippe's July Monarchy, established himself among his contemporaries as the foremost historian not only of France but also of England, where he took refuge after his ouster during the Revolution of 1848. Already in 1827 he had published a 25-volume collection of memoirs 'relative to the English Revolution', including those by May, Ludlow, Hutchinson, Clarendon, and Burnet. While in his introduction to Hutchinson's memoirs, Guizot praises her as a wife and mother, he also cites her in his multi-volume history of the English Civil Wars. Because Guizot's histories were published in English translation, his repeated citation of Hutchinson affirmed her authority for the English readership. Henriette Guizot de Witt (1829–1908), who not only assisted her father in his historical scholarship, but also produced editions and histories in her own right, included Hutchinson in Les femmes dans l'histoire (1888). While Guizot de Witt, like her father, praises Hutchinson's memoirs for centring on her husband rather than more broadly on the English Revolution, Guizot de Witt's history nevertheless anticipates its recovery in our own time as an important example of women's political writing in response to civil war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers Lucy Hutchinson's role as the 'Governor's wife' in the garrison of Nottingham Castle during the English Civil War. Her own account in the 'Life of Colonel Hutchinson' is contextualised through general analysis of women's presence in garrisons, and more specific treatment of other Governor's wives. Nottingham is contrasted with Warwick Castle where pre-civil war hierarchies and relationships overshadowed new military arrangements. Garrisons were a site of militarised domesticity where governors wielded a type of patriarchal household authority, and capable wives played an important part. Archival evidence suggests that Lucy Hutchinson was recognised as a key member of the garrison's administration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

John Hutchinson, as governor of Nottingham and its castle, was crucial to parliament's cause in the north and east Midlands during the first civil war. Alongside Sir John Gell, Hutchinson's counterpart in Derbyshire he was largely responsible for the initial establishment of the parliamentarian presence in the region. Throughout the war, despite its sporadic isolation, Nottingham castle provided an anchor and rendezvous for parliament in the region. However, there are questions about Hutchinson's leadership and his failure to secure promotion and greater responsibilities, which, it might be argued, he merited. The answer seems to lie in his relationship with the civil government in Nottingham itself, despite his strong relationship with Sir Thomas Fairfax. Despite his success in the first civil war, Hutchinson did not achieve further promotion, partly, it seems, due to his problematic relationship with Fairfax's second in command, Oliver Cromwell. This article explores Hutchinson's inability to develop a role outside the confines of Nottingham and its county or to rise above the rank of colonel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

John Hutchinson, as governor of Nottingham and its castle, was crucial to parliament's cause in the north and east Midlands during the first civil war. Alongside Sir John Gell, Hutchinson's counterpart in Derbyshire he was largely responsible for the initial establishment of the parliamentarian presence in the region. Throughout the war, despite its sporadic isolation, Nottingham castle provided an anchor and rendezvous for parliament in the region. However, there are questions about Hutchinson's leadership and his failure to secure promotion and greater responsibilities, which, it might be argued, he merited. The answer seems to lie in his relationship with the civil government in Nottingham itself, despite his strong relationship with Sir Thomas Fairfax. Despite his success in the first civil war, Hutchinson did not achieve further promotion, partly, it seems, due to his problematic relationship with Fairfax's second in command, Oliver Cromwell. This article explores Hutchinson's inability to develop a role outside the confines of Nottingham and its county or to rise above the rank of colonel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mihoko Suzuki, I Antigone's Example: Early Modern Women's Writing in Times of Civil War from Christine de Pizan to Helen Maria Williams i , Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022. In Chapter Four, Suzuki is concerned with the political writings of Margaret Cavendish (1623-1673), who spent four years in France, attending Queen Henrietta-Maria's court in exile. [Extracted from the article]