Oliver Cromwell: British Library Historic Lives

by PeterGaunt (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2004

  $3.35

  Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) is a figure of enormous importance in the history of Britain. Propelled to prominence amid the political and military turmoil of the 1640s, he became a dazzlingly successful soldier and politician, a man who possessed the power and influence to shape the course of revolution and reform. A natural military genius, he played a crucial role both in crushing royalism in England and Wales and in establishing English republican control over Ireland and Scotland. He rose to be head of the army and eventually head of state of a united Britain as Lord Protector. He was a statesman of considerable ability, running a strong and stable regime, which began the process of rebuilding the nation and healing the divisions of the civil war. Yet Cromwell was also a religious visionary, a man of God, who believed that the Lord had not only chosen him for some special mission but had also handed him the military success and political power to fulfil that divine mission. In consequence, Cromwell strove during his closing years to bring to fruition a broad programme of religious and moral reformation, to the end displaying a burning zeal to create a better and more Godly land, and thus always retained his radical edge. This illustrated biography provides a concise and accessible introduction to Oliver Cromwell's life and career. The text draws upon extensive and up-to-date research as well as contemporary speeches and letters, both personal and political, and gives an insight into the hopes and fears, goals and aspirations of this powerful and exceptional man.

• Used

  Paperback
  1997

  $3.35

  An assessment of the man and myth, exploring the legends which surround Cromwell and the differing interpretations.

• Used

  Hardcover
  1996

  $3.35

  Oliver Cromwell is unique in British history. No figure has risen so high from such modest beginnings, and none has generated such intense and sharply-divided opinions among both contemporaries and succeeding generations. This book re-examines Cromwell's life and career. It opens with an assessment of the man and the myth, exploring the legends which surround Cromwell, the differing interpretations advanced by generations of historians and the source material upon which such interpretations can be based. The survey also includes thematic analyses of some key aspects of Cromwell, including his character and appearance, his political outlook and his religious beliefs. The majority of the study, however, is given over to a substantial, chronologically-based examination of his life and career, highlighting key events and turning points, and exploring in detail Cromwell's role and power as Lord Protector. Where possible, the analysis is based upon strictly contemporary material, especially Cromwell's own writings and speeches.

• New

  Paperback
  1997

  $42.26

  An assessment of the man and myth, exploring the legends which surround Cromwell and the differing interpretations.