It was interesting to see the rise and fall of the aristocracy as well. A man could come from relatively humble beginnings and become a Duke in one lifetime. And lose their titles, lands (and heads) even faster. Though “an absolutist by nature”, James was canny enough to realise the limits of ambition in his wealthy new kingdom. His son, Charles – the spare who became the heir following the death of his glamorous brother Henry in 1612 – was less flexible. Healey is scathing in his judgment (and, refreshingly, never afraid to judge) about this “man of blood” who in the 1640s led his country into two needless civil wars, describing him as a “stuffy authoritarian… never ruthless enough to be a successful tyrant”, though he concedes, as did Rubens, that the king had a good eye for a painting.

The seventeenth century began as the English suddenly found themselves ruled by a Scotsman, and ended in the shadow of an invasion by the Dutch. Under James I, the country suffered terrorism and witch panics. Under his son Charles, state and society collapsed into civil war, to be followed by an army coup and regicide. For a short time – for the only time in history – England was a republic. There were bitter struggles over faith and no boundaries to politics. In the coffee shops and alehouses of plague-ridden London, new ideas were forged that were angry, populist and almost impossible for monarchs to control. A sparkling account of a period that is crucial for any understanding of the history of the UK, Europe and the world beyond.” —Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads Charles I was king, and his belief in his divine right to rule came into direct conflict with a variety of constituencies within Parliament that insisted a king must prove himself a “lawful magistrate” of his realm. Some groups were more radical than others, but all agreed ultimate sovereignty lay with the people. Any ruler who hoped to reign needed to accept this new political consciousness. Charles I refused and paid for it with his head. It provides a narrative based history which proceeds at pace through the period from the ascension of King James I (of England) to the Proclamation of William and Mary as King and Queen, taking in all of the major events of the era (from Gunpowder plot, to Charles I ascension, the Civil Wars, the King’s execution, the Republic and the Restoration and the brief reign of James II culminating in the Glorious Revolution).Although it finished on a nice note, I could have read on! I would have loved to see the impact of the French Revolution on the UK. Perhaps the most important evolution which the civil war helped to bring about was the end of absolutism and the divine right of kings. Even though the kings, and indeed Cromwell, dismissed Parliament several times, by the end of the century Parliament was in the ascendancy with power in the hands of the people and the monarch's wings clipped. Yet even today at the recent coronation we saw the bizarre spectacle of the Archbishop of Canterbury anointing Charles III as if he really believes, perhaps he does, that God has put Charles on the throne. Jonathan Healey’s The Blazing World is a new political history of 17th Century England, a time of unprecedented revolutionary upheaval in politics, society, religion and the economy. It was the era of the Stuarts, when monarchs were held accountable for the first time to the law and the people. A time of revolution - or, more correctly, revolution(s), when the world seemed perpetually ablaze. Religious extremism and movements such as Puritanism were bumping up against modernism and free thinking, superstition was clashing with science. It was a time of trade and social & economic development, and also a time of war as England became embroiled in continental conflicts. It was in the 17th century that the foundations of the Imperialism and Industrial Revolution of the centuries to come were laid. To the extent there is any overarching theme emerging from the book, it is that the Civil War wasn't just about religion – people were also motivated by deeply held beliefs about the constitution and the accountability of those in power to those they ruled. In that sense, the book is a subtle nod towards the original Whig interpretation of events in seventeenth century England (but with due regard given to the importance of religion). One thing I took from this book was how ideas that were quite radical for the time (such as suffrage for all adult males, or something close to it) were discussed and taken seriously (by some within the Parliamentarian side) during the Civil War (for example, at the Putney Debates of 1647). Dross and dung There were other signs, though, that the older, more apocalyptic prophecy might still be the true one. Intellectuals and commentators of the day pored over cosmic events to assess whether the universe lay unbalanced and whether God’s wrath was imminent. What they saw did not bring comfort. They looked at England and saw a land full of witches:‘They abound in all places,’ fretted the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas, Edmund Anderson. People tried to divine signs of the future in meteorological phenomena like unusual tempests, and strange biological prodigies, such as ‘monstrous’ human births, and saw warnings from God. For, as it was said, ‘God doth premonish before he doth punish.’ There were blazing stars in the heavens, which were sure to be signs of cosmic disturbance. Comets, such as those of 1577 and 1580, foretold trouble, and most worrying of all, there were great new stars that shone bright enough to be seen in the daytime. One had appeared in 1572 and another would shine in 1604. No one remembered anything like this ever before.

One of the many virtues of Jonathan Healey’s exciting new history of England during its most revolutionary period is the skilful way in which he thoroughly dissects the often obscure points of contention while never losing sight of the need to keep the narrative flowing. A rich and compelling account of one of the most fascinating and turbulent periods in all our history.” —Simon Griffith, Mail on SundayAnother slightly Whigish characteristic of this book is that, in Jonathan Healey's telling, the story of seventeenth century England is, broadly speaking, a story of progress. We entered the century a land of witchcraft trials, frequent executions, and famine; we ended it with all of these in sharp decline, and a pattern of economic growth and specialisation that foreshadow the later industrial revolution. Bottoms and farts The book was at times slightly hard going with a lot of characters and documents popping up that weren’t re-explained, so a bit easy to get lost if you’d put it down for a while. It would have been good to have an index of characters and key laws/treaties. But I soldiered on through and got the main thrust of it. Healey’s enthusiasm and love for the period is clear. Thanks to the explosion of published material of the time, there is a wealth of surviving pamphlets, manuscripts, diaries and documents forming a treasure trove of material for scholars such as Healey to delve into. This was the first century to provide such riches for it’s future historians. This book details many such changes in fortunes and makes clear that most modern aristocrats wouldn’t have managed to hang on to their titles over the last few centuries without the peace and stability of democracy. An irony if ever there was one.

Charles I was a disaster. He triggered a civil war. He was captured and beheaded by Parliament. For the next 11 years there was no King. England was ruled by Parliament and then by Oliver Cromwell, acting as a "Protector". Of course I knew about the stunning execution of King Charles in the Banqueting House, which I have had the opportunity to tour in the past decade after a recent restoration, and I knew about Oliver Cromwell's everyman reign. But I wanted to learn more about the drivers behind these great events. And Healey's history open my eyes to a century of much broader and deeper change than I had imagined. "[The] gentry and middling sort were becoming more engaged with law, politics,and government. It meant that any ruler, or administration, that wanted to succeed in governing England would have to work with and through these groups." (p. 39). Although the "age of revolution" in America and France was a century in the future, the ferment was rising in England now, driven in part by rising literacy and an explosion in the publishing of pamphlets for popular consumption. "There are just over 600 surviving titles per year in the 1630s. . . . In 1641, there are 2,042" (p. 145), driving the "politicisation of the English population" (p. 171) in a "clash of ideologies, as often as not between members of the same class." (p. 182)The 1600's gave us so much else entertainingly and so interestingly written about by John Healey in The Blazing World. I was keen to read about the Levellers, a group so ahead of its time and its aspirations still in the 21st century a pipe dream in a country still defined by its class system and elite with the royals at the top.

An admirably even-handed account. . . . For those new to the subject, Healey’s retelling is exemplary.” —Jerry Brotton, Financial Times Did you ever wonder what happened after Queen Elizabeth I died after a long reign but did not have an heir? Did you ever wonder what happened to King Charles I and King Charles II? If you have wondered about these questions, then this book is for you. Jonathan Healey has written a one volume history of England from the coming of King James I, who succeeded Elizabeth I, through the Civil War and the execution of Charles I. There followed the Commonwealth under Cromwell and the Restoration of the monarchy under Charles II. The history concludes with the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688, with the ouster of James II out of concerns regarding absolutism and the reestablishment of Catholicism, and the subsequent establishment of William and Mary on the throne.A major new history of England's turbulent seventeenth century and how it marked the birth of a new world