Literary Pursuits: Recommended reading for the Tudor and Stu

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Recommended reading for the Tudor and Stu

Printed From: History Community ~ All Empires
Category: Scholarly Pursuits
Forum Name: Literary Pursuits
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URL: http://www.allempires.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=21637
Printed Date: 28-Apr-2024 at 05:36
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Topic: Recommended reading for the Tudor and Stu

Posted By: Aster Thrax Eupator
Subject: Recommended reading for the Tudor and Stu
Date Posted: 10-Sep-2007 at 12:17

For personal interest and for my early modern course at College, I've read Maurice Ashely - England in the 17th Century and Bindoff - Tudor England. I preferred the Ashely's book on the 17th century more, but I just frankly can't find a good book on either. Both seem to be peppered with endless lists of MPs and Privy councillors who don't seem to have much of a large part, and both go into intensive religious jargon which I know nothing about. Rather than read a dry, dated and boring work which is effectively just a list of events with not much interpretation (it seems that's all it is), could someone please recommend for me a good, all-round book highlighting the general hallmarks of the Tudor and Stuart periods. One which explains the general context without peppering it with irrelivant tangents.

Regards,

/Aster

Replies:

Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: 12-Sep-2007 at 21:29

..hi there...

..You could try 'The Stuart Age' by Barry Coward (Longman, London) or 'A History of the Modern British Isles 1603-1707' by David L. Smith (Blackwell, Oxford).....

..admittedly the focus of both books is mainly concerned with the Stuart period, but Coward's book has some topics regarding 'The Elizabethan Constitution', ..it also deals briefly with society, population, culture, trade and colonization, manufacturing, popular beliefs, and intellectual developments, as well as religion, government and monarchy...but generally, it deals more widely with the reigns of the early Stuarts, the English 'revolution', the reigns of William III and Queen Anne and later Stuart England..while the book is mainly narrative, there is enough analysis to raise it above a mere introductory piece, and although it is not densely academic, it will provide the general context you require with an easy to use quick reference appeal...

...Smith's book is pretty much more of the same except the focus is more on the monarchy's, the 'civil' wars, politics and parliament etc etc...still, it is again, a very good broad introductory book, and both publications contain a wealth of bibliographical and reference information that should prompt more in-depth reading and stimulate further exploration...

..hope that helps a bit...

..ta ta for now....AoO...

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Posted By: Aster Thrax Eupator
Date Posted: 13-Sep-2007 at 10:13

Thanks for that! I've been rummaging around in a few bookshops and saw it, and it looks damn good

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Posted By: Al Jassas
Date Posted: 13-Sep-2007 at 13:33

Hello to you all

I am just about to finish "Britain under the Tudors and Stuarts" by Denis Richards which is a very concise and excellent book with lots of illustrations.

Al-Jassas