Description
Book SynopsisCharles 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.
Trade Review'Richard Cust's new biography (is) by far the best to date... This is an outstanding piece of work: not only the best life of the king yet produced, but also the most subtle and balanced synthesis of current research on the politics and religion of the reign currently in print.'
John Adamson, BBC History
'Cust comes as close to producing a definitive account of the nature of Charles I's kingship as anyone is likely to do for a long time... We should be grateful....for this brilliantly conceived and deeply pondered work. It becomes a crucial point of reference, always trustworthy and enlightening.'
Anthony Fletcher, History Today, May 2006
'...the most impressive aspect of the book is the way that interwoven in the narrative is a consistent, novel and coherent view of Charles the politician. What is novel about Dr. Custs view is that he is not content to put Charless political failures down simply, as many recent historians have done, to the kings lack of political ability. His explanations are more subtle and, thus, more convincing.'
Professor Barry Coward, Birkbeck College, London; author of The Stuart Age: England1603-1714 (Longman, 2003)
Table of Contents1. A Political Apprenticeship, 1600-1622 2. Charles and Buckingham, 1623-1628 3. The Personal Rule, 1629-1640 4. Charles and the British Problem, 1625-1638 5. Charles and the Outbreak of Civil War, 1639-1642 6. Charles and Civil War, 1642-1649 Conclusion
