The Civil Wars of England

by J.P. Kenyon

One of the bloodiest - and most romanticized - episodes in British history, the Civil War period was also one of the most copmplex. For three hundred years the civil wars have raised as many questions as leading historians could provideanswers; John Kenyon, a leading authority on the Stuart period, interprets that bitter and tormented age for the late twentieth century.

Genres: History

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

John Philipps Kenyon was an English historian. He was one of the foremost historians of 17th-century England, a prolific writer and reviewer, and a Fellow of the British Academy.

Reviews

[Justin Covey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating book. Consists of two types of chapters, ones which quickly move through societal and political developments, and ones that go into blow by blow descriptions of the military engagements.
The former is my bread and butter, the latter is something I don't often delve into. But the truth is the former depend entirely on the latter, and so the deep dive was, to me, a fascinating look into the actual mechanisms of history. The vagaries of personality, materials, terrain, and weather from which all of history inexorably flows.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative but in the typical boring British style.

A decent book in putting you into the midst of the battles.
As a career Cavalryman I thought the breakdown in describing the differences between Cavalry, Dragoons and foot is fabulous.

I found it hard to finish the last two chapters as they were really boring.

Check it out from the library, don't buy it.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Standard-style military history that glosses over politics and economics. I hope to find better books on the topic.