Product Description

Charles 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.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #48902 in Books
• Published on: 2007-07-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

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. Cust’s view is that he is not content to put Charles’s political failures down simply, as many recent historians have done, to the king’s 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)

From the Back Cover

Charles I paperback

Cust

'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

Charles I has often been portrayed as unfit to rule, with historians blaming him for the events surrounding the Civil War. In this major biography Richard Cust examines and addresses their judgements of the king – that he was an uncounselled ruler, insufficiently popular, more effective as a party leader than as a monarch, or, most damning, a fatal combination of the obstinate, unrealistic and untruthful.

In reality, Charles 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 Britainhas ever known.

Although Cust shows convincingly that Charles I was not ‘unfit to be a king’, emphasising his strengths as a party leader and conviction politician, he concludes that, none the less, this monarch’s prejudices and attitudes, and his mishandling of political crises did much to bring about a civil war in Britain. He argues that ultimately, Charles pushed his enemies into a position where they had little choice but to execute him.

About the Author

Richard Cust has been a History lecturer, at Birmingham University for twenty five years and over this time he has published a series of books and articles which have helped to set the agenda for a ‘post revisionist’ account of early Stuart politics. His books include The Forced Loan and English Politics 1626-1628 and Conflict in Early Stuart England (edited with Ann Hughes), another Longman publication.

Customer Reviews

Recommended reading
In 'Charles I: A Political Life', Richard Cust has produced a comprehensive account of Charles' political career. While covering much old ground (this book is partly a synthesis of modern hisoriography), Cust offers a fresh look at Charles' political influences and motives. In particular, the section on Charles as Prince of Wales is partciularly insightful.
Although there is not much competition, this is the finest academic biography of Charles I around.