Politics, Religion and Popularity in Early Stuart Britain: Essays in Honour of Conrad Russell

Revisionism has had a far-reaching impact upon the history of politics and religion in early Stuart Britain. The essays collected here set out to assess this impact and develop further some of the central themes highlighted in the work of the historian Conrad Russell, and address a series of themes arising out of recent debates on the causes of the English Civil War. The subject-matter ranges from high-political narrative to the study of rumour, gossip, and print culture. Topics covered include the character of Charles I’s kingship, the place of Parliament in the political system, the divisive legacy of the English Reformation, and the problems posed by trying to unite England with Scotland and Ireland. The collection will interest readers concerned with the political and religious history, and also the literature, of early seventeenth-century Britain.

• Includes important new contributions to the debate about the causes of the English Civil War • Contains material of interest to students of early seventeenth-century literature as well as to religious and political historians • Offers an assessment of the legacy of revisionism, and a guide to some future directions of research on early Stuart Britain

Revisionism and its legacies: the work of Conrad Russell Thomas Cogswell, Richard Cust and Peter Lake; Part I. Politics: 1. Puritan politicians and King James VI and I, 1587–1604 Nicholas Tyacke; 2. The sacred, the profane and the Union: politics of sermon and masque at the court wedding of Lord and Lady Hay Lori Anne Ferrell; 3. Capital Life: Members of Parliament Outside the House Pauline Croft; 4. The personal rule of James I, 1611–1620 Andrew Thrush; 5. Profiting from misfortune: corruption and the Admiralty under the early Stuarts David D. Hebb; 6. Negotiating grace Cynthia Herrup; Part II. Religion: 7. The pastoral tightrope: a Puritan pedagogue in Jacobean London Julia F. Merritt; 8. The creation of Laudianism: a new approach Anthony Milton; 9. Provincial preaching and allegiance in the first English Civil War Jacqueline Eales; Part III. Popularity: 10. The people’s love: the duke of Buckingham and popularity Thomas Cogswell; 11. Charles I and popularity Richard Cust; 12. Puritans, popularity and petitions: local politics in national context: Cheshire 1641 Peter Lake; A bibliography of the principal published writings of Conrad Russell, 1962–2002 Richard Cust and Elizabeth Russell.

‘… remarkable and unusual tribute to a great historian …’. History

\'… a beautiful piece of historical narrative … this volume not only acknowledges Conrad Russell\'s influence on those now working in early Stuart studies, it also demonstrates the continuing fecundity of early Stuart Britain as a field of historical research.\' Royal Stuart Review