The Ancient Lowly

by Cyrenus Osborne Ward

The ancient lowly; a history of the ancient working people from the earliest known period to the adoption of Christianity by Constantine(~732 pages)

Hardcover

Published January 1, 1900

About the author

Cyrenus Osborne Ward was an active organizer and contributor to American socialist politics in the 19th century. He served on the Council of the First International at the The Hague Congress (1872) and worked in Marxist politics in Europe and the United States for much of the late nineteenth century.

Raised to work on his parents’ Illinois farm, he left home in 1848 when he was seventeen. He travelled, earning his keep in manual trades and as a violinist. He read voraciously in history and geology and taught himself ancient and modern languages. He was rejected for service in the Civil War, and became involved with organised labour in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. His political writings brought him to the attention of international socialists;  the archive holding Ward’s papers in New York Public Library contains his membership card in the International Workingman’s Association, dated 1870 and signed by Karl Marx.

When working as librarian and translator for the US bureau of labour Ward first published his great work, under the title A History of the Ancient Working People and The Ancient Lowly to the Adoption of Christianity by Constantine.