This cultural history challenges the standard depiction of the 1660s as the beginning of a new age of stability, demonstrating that the decade following the Restoration was just as complex and exciting as the revolutionary years that preceded it.

The late seventeenth century was a period of extraordinary turbulence and political violence in Britain, the like of which has never been seen since. Beginning with the Restoration of the monarchy after the Civil War, this book traces the fate of the monarchy from Charles II's triumphant accession in 1660 to the growing discontent of the 1680s. Harris looks beyond the popular image of Restoration England revelling in its freedom from the austerity of Puritan rule under a merry monarch and reconstructs the human tragedy of Restoration politics where people were brutalised, hounded and exploited by a regime that was desperately insecure after two decade of civil war and republican rule.

Dr Bliss’s pamphlet discusses in detail the Restoration settlement as both an expedient solution to the problems facing Charles II and the political nation in 1660 and as a basis for a long term solution to the problems of relations between crown and parliament, public, finance and religion. These are the principle recurring themes of this, but explicit attention is also given to foreign policy, to relations between central and local government, and to the structure of central government itself. The book combines a broadly narrative approach with concentration on certain problems, e.g. finance, which the author has identified as particularly significant.

This key Seminar Study was first published as Restoration England: The Reign of Charles II in 1985. Unavailable for several years, the book has now been heavily revised, and expanded, to take account of over ten years of new scholarship. In particular, the Second Edition reflects new work done on political parties, the constitution, taxation, the church, and the legacy of the civil wars. As ever primary documents illustrate points raised in the text and an extensive bibliography directs readers to further reading. New for this edition is a chronology of the main events in Charles II's reign which, given the thematic treatment of the reign, readers are likely to find particularly useful. When Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660 the event was widely greeted as a return to normal after the upheavals of civil war. In this short study Professor John Miller explores how far this was true and how far the civil wars had, in fact, weakened (or strengthened) the monarchy. The book divides neatly into two: in the first part the 'Restoration Settlement' of 1660-4 is examined in detail; and, in the second, the salient features of government, politics and religion under Charles II are considered, seeking to show how well the restored regime worked in practice. Throughout, complex issues of change over time are explained as clearly and concisely as possible and the Restoration is placed in the wider context of the development of England in the seventeenth century.

A Nation Transformed is a major collection of essays by a mix of young and eminent scholars of early modern English history, literature, and political thought. The fruit of an intense interdisciplinary two-day conference held at the Huntington Library, California, it asks whether and in what ways the culture and politics of early modern England was transformed by the second half of the seventeenth century. In sharp contrast to those who have emphasised continuity and the persistence of the ancien régime, the contributors argue that England in 1700 was profoundly different from what it had been in 1640. Essays in the volume deal with changes in natural philosophy, literature, religion, politics, political thought, and political economy. The insights offered here, based on innovative research, will interest scholars and students of early modern history, Renaissance and Augustan literature, and historians of political thought.

Offers a transnational perspective on 17th-century English republicanism, focusing on the lived experiences of English republican exiles.

Through the extensive diaries of Presbyterian minister Oliver Heywood, this book explores the role that individuals played in fashioning their religious communities during the Restoration, as England stumbled from persecution towards a limited toleration of Protestant dissenters.

Exam board: AQA Level: GCSE Subject: History First teaching: September 2016 First exams: Summer 2018 Target success in AQA GCSE (9-1) History with this proven formula for effective, structured revision. Key content coverage is combined with exam-style questions, revision tasks and practical tips to create a revision guide that students can rely on to review, strengthen and test their knowledge. With My Revision Notes every student can: - Plan and manage a successful revision programme using the topic-by-topic planner - Enjoy an interactive approach to revision, with clear topic summaries that consolidate knowledge and related activities that put the content into context - Build, practise and enhance exam skills by progressing through revision tasks and Test Yourself activities - Improve exam technique through exam-style questions and sample answers with commentary from expert authors and teachers - Get exam ready with extra quick quizzes and answers to the activities available online This revision guide covers the British depth study 'Restoration England, 1660-1685' (Paper 2, option BD).

This book, first published in 1981, provides a systematic assessment of the social relations of Restoration science. On the basis of a detailed analysis of the early history of the Royal Society, Professor Hunter examines the key issues concerning the role of science in late seventeenth-century England.

The position of English monarchs as supreme governors of the Church of England profoundly affected early modern politics and religion. This innovative book explores how tensions in church-state relations created by Henry VIII's Reformation continued to influence relationships between the crown, Parliament and common law during the Restoration, a distinct phase in England's 'long Reformation'. Debates about the powers of kings and parliaments, the treatment of Dissenters and emerging concepts of toleration were viewed through a Reformation prism where legitimacy depended on godly status. This book discusses how the institutional, legal and ideological framework of supremacy perpetuated the language of godly kingship after 1660 and how supremacy was complicated by the ambivalent Tudor legacy. It was manipulated by not only Anglicans, but also tolerant kings and intolerant parliaments, Catholics, Dissenters and radicals like Thomas Hobbes. Invented to uphold the religious and political establishments, supremacy paradoxically ended up subverting them.