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This Sceptred Isle #5
This Sceptred Isle, Vol. 5: Restoration and Glorious Revolution 1660-1702
The award-winning story of Britain, from the arrival of Julius Caesar in 55BC to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, specially written for BBC Radio 4 by Christopher Lee, narrated by Anna Massey and featuring extracts from Sir Winston Churchill's History of the English Speaking Peoples read by Peter Jeffrey.
After the death of Oliver Cromwell, the Protectorate collapsed and parliament voted for the return of the exiled king, Charles II. His quarter-century reign witnessed the Great Plague, the Great Fire of London, the birth of political parties and a great prosperousness in the arts.
Charles was succeeded by his brother, James the Second, whose Catholicism aroused deep-rooted fears of French domination. These fears led to the 1688 revolution when the Dutch Protestant Prince William of Orange, grandson of Charles I, was invited to invade England.
William ruled the country jointly with his wife, Mary, the deposed James' daughter. Their reign saw increasing discontent along the Jacobites in Scotland and in Ireland a battle whose echoes have still not died away; the Battle of the Boyne.
After the death of Oliver Cromwell, the Protectorate collapsed and parliament voted for the return of the exiled king, Charles II. His quarter-century reign witnessed the Great Plague, the Great Fire of London, the birth of political parties and a great prosperousness in the arts.
Charles was succeeded by his brother, James the Second, whose Catholicism aroused deep-rooted fears of French domination. These fears led to the 1688 revolution when the Dutch Protestant Prince William of Orange, grandson of Charles I, was invited to invade England.
William ruled the country jointly with his wife, Mary, the deposed James' daughter. Their reign saw increasing discontent along the Jacobites in Scotland and in Ireland a battle whose echoes have still not died away; the Battle of the Boyne.
3 pages, Audio CD
First published May 7, 1996
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About the author
Christopher Lee
329 books34 followersChristopher Lee was a British writer, historian, and broadcaster, best known for creating and writing the acclaimed BBC Radio 4 documentary series This Sceptred Isle. His career spanned journalism, academia, military service, and historical writing.
After an early life at sea, he studied history at London University before joining the BBC as a defence and foreign affairs correspondent, with postings in Moscow and the Middle East. He later transitioned into academia, becoming the first Quatercentenary Fellow in Contemporary History at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and conducting research at Birkbeck College. He also served in the Royal Navy's Joint Intelligence Reserve Branch, reaching the rank of captain.
Lee’s This Sceptred Isle, originally broadcast in 1995, chronicled British history from Roman times to the 20th century and was expanded with additional series covering the 20th century and the British Empire. His historical works include 1603, Nelson and Napoleon, and Monarchy, Past, Present… and Future?, as well as an abridgment of Winston Churchill's A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. He was also a prolific radio playwright, penning over 100 plays and series for BBC Radio 4.
Beyond writing, he served as a defence and foreign affairs adviser to the British Forces Broadcasting Service for 30 years and was involved in policy analysis.
He divided his time between Sussex and Florence, Italy, and was married to portrait painter Fiona Graham-Mackay. Lee passed away in 2021 at the age of 79.
After an early life at sea, he studied history at London University before joining the BBC as a defence and foreign affairs correspondent, with postings in Moscow and the Middle East. He later transitioned into academia, becoming the first Quatercentenary Fellow in Contemporary History at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and conducting research at Birkbeck College. He also served in the Royal Navy's Joint Intelligence Reserve Branch, reaching the rank of captain.
Lee’s This Sceptred Isle, originally broadcast in 1995, chronicled British history from Roman times to the 20th century and was expanded with additional series covering the 20th century and the British Empire. His historical works include 1603, Nelson and Napoleon, and Monarchy, Past, Present… and Future?, as well as an abridgment of Winston Churchill's A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. He was also a prolific radio playwright, penning over 100 plays and series for BBC Radio 4.
Beyond writing, he served as a defence and foreign affairs adviser to the British Forces Broadcasting Service for 30 years and was involved in policy analysis.
He divided his time between Sussex and Florence, Italy, and was married to portrait painter Fiona Graham-Mackay. Lee passed away in 2021 at the age of 79.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 18, 2009
This installment of the audio history of Britain covers the later Stuart kings and the Glorious Revolution. It continues to be compelling in a way that's a bit hard to explain. It's not particularly in-depth or analytical history, but the way it weaves primary sources into the ongoing narrative has a way of making history come alive. Listening to this installment, I really found myself pondering how it must have felt to be a British subject seeing a bad king deposed in a coup by a foreign prince. In a lot of histories, this is presented as a logical step in the progression towards constitutional monarchy, but when you think about it from the point of view of someone who doesn't have the benefit of hindsight, it actually seems pretty scary, and not particularly obviously a victory for the forces of freedom and democracy. (This Sceptred Isle doesn't get all the credit for this insight - I was primed for this by reading a friend's recent review of a completely different history of the Glorious Revolution.)
A note on the Audible.com edition: the audio file seems to have been assembled in the wrong order - it starts near the end of Charles II's reign, proceeds up to the arrival of William and Mary, and then suddenly skips back to the Restoration for no apparent reason. It makes a lot more sense if you listen to it in the correct order.
A note on the Audible.com edition: the audio file seems to have been assembled in the wrong order - it starts near the end of Charles II's reign, proceeds up to the arrival of William and Mary, and then suddenly skips back to the Restoration for no apparent reason. It makes a lot more sense if you listen to it in the correct order.
September 23, 2018
It is a sort of shallow drive-by look at English history, but it is fun and lively. I enjoyed it very much.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews