The Murder of King James I

by Alastair Bellany, Thomas Cogswell

Overview

A year after the death of James I in 1625, a sensational pamphlet accused the Duke of Buckingham of murdering the king. It was an allegation that would haunt English politics for nearly forty years. In this exhaustively researched new book, two leading scholars of the era, Alastair Bellany and Thomas Cogswell, uncover the untold story of how a secret history of courtly poisoning shaped and reflected the political conflicts that would eventually plunge the British Isles into civil war and revolution. Illuminating many hitherto obscure aspects of early modern political culture, this eagerly anticipated work is both a fascinating story of political intrigue and a major exploration of the forces that destroyed the Stuart monarchy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300214963
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	11/24/2015
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	656
Sales rank:	930,647
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.40(h) x 2.30(d)

About the Author

Alastair Bellany is associate professor of history at Rutgers University and the author of The Politics of Court Scandal in Early Modern England. Thomas Cogswell is professor of history at UC Riverside. His books include The Blessed Revolution: English Politics and the Coming of War, 1621-1624.

Editorial Reviews

[The authors] display sleuthing skills as exceptional as any fictional detective’s, having tracked down every reprint and manuscript copy of Eglisham’s original text… the richness of the material unearthed is compelling. By the end of this exhaustively researched and elegantly written study, Bellany and Cogswell have made the strongest case imaginable for their thesis”– Anne Somerset, Literary Review

Literary Review - Anne Somerset

Brilliant….an original and fascinating contribution to early modern studies... Told with skill by Bellany and Cogswell, it illuminates the perilous path of politics and paranoia that linked high statecraft and gutter gossip from the 1620s to the 1660s."—David Cressy, Journal of British Studies

Journal of British Studies - David Cressy

Cogswell and Bellany are both accomplished story-tellers, and their collaboration is much more than the sum of their considerable parts… This is an astonishing detective work. It is also a magnificent piece of political reconstruction, locating each twist and turn in the plot within a fully international context… This book does more than anything published in the last 20 years to explain why Charles I never had a chance and why there was a civil war.”—John Morril, History Today

History Today - John Morril

The book is structured like a thriller, and even those familiar with the period will find themselves wanting to know what happens next… The clarity and wit of Bellany and Cogswell’s writing, and their inherently interesting subject,  mean that The Murder of King James I should appeal to, and deserves to find, a wide audience.”—Dr. David Coast, Reviews in History

Reviews in History - Dr. David Coast

[An] absorbing and meticulously researched study”—Marcus Nevitt, Spectator

Spectator - Marcus Tanner

The Murder of King James I is a work of imposing learning, imaginatively and adroitly organised, by two fine scholars who identify an unjustly neglected subject and bring it enjoyably to life.”—Blair Worden, London Review of Books

London Review of Books - Blair Worden

Despite its bulk it makes for easy reading: it is exciting and accessibly written and introduces personalities, places and topics with care… Bellany and Cogswell have produced an excellent example of the genre, and one which illustrates its potential superbly for a better understanding of political history.”—Ronald Hutton, TLS

TLS - Ronald Hutton