Oliver Cromwell, Ronald Hutton
Oliver Cromwell, Ronald Hutton
List: $29.99 | Sale: $21.00
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Oliver Cromwell
Commander in Chief

Author: Ronald Hutton

Narrator: Nigel Patterson

Unabridged: 15 hr 23 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 02/11/2025


Synopsis

The second volume in an acclaimed biography of Oliver Cromwell, from the capture of Charles I to the expulsion of the Long Parliament

In 1647, the Parliamentarians were divided. They had won the first civil war and the king was in custody, but disagreements over the way forward had led to a stalemate. As the leader of one party, Oliver Cromwell found himself again at the center of events.

In the second volume of his pioneering biography, Ronald Hutton traces Cromwell's career from 1647 through to his seizure of supreme power. These decisive years saw the execution of Charles I and the establishment of the Commonwealth of England, as well as notorious and savage campaigns in Ireland and Scotland. Cromwell's political and military leadership were well honed after years of practice, but this was also the period of his greatest ruthlessness and brutality.

This groundbreaking account reveals a different kind of Cromwell, showing how he navigated the many forces ranged against him—and rose to the pinnacle of his power.

About Ronald Hutton

Ronald Hutton is professor of history at Bristol University and a leading authority on the British Isles in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, on ancient and medieval paganism and magic, and on the global context of witchcraft beliefs. He is the author of seventeen books.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jennifer on June 13, 2012

I will, perhaps, read this book again some day. I thoroughly enjoyed it; while I am, by my own admission, a very slow reader, I blazed through this book in three days. Roosevelt's take on Cromwell is even-handed, acknowledging the brilliance of a man limited by the thoughts of his time - thoughts wh......more

Goodreads review by Chris on November 27, 2014

Fascinating overview of Cromwell's life and times by a great statesman of another era and country. TR sees Cromwell charitably as a forerunner of the puritans who initiated the American Revolution, while downplaying his genocidal radicalism as typical of his age. Roosevelt defends Cromwell as sincer......more

Goodreads review by Don on December 25, 2024

Compelling and engaging narrative. 5 stars for the narrative, 3.5 stars for the analysis - which is generally balanced but certainly a bit anachronistic and influenced by Whig historiography.......more

Goodreads review by Parker on March 17, 2024

Fair and insightful biography about one of the most consequential leaders of Britain written by one of the most legendary presidents of America.......more

Goodreads review by Otunba on January 25, 2014

If all men in power will live the way Oliver did, what a wonderful world we will all be today!......more