Osborne, Simon Charles (1993) Popular religion, culture and politics in the Midlands, c. 1638-1646. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

This thesis is a study of popular allegiance in five
midland counties during the English Civil War, 1642-
1646. It considers the relationship between allegiance
and popular religion and culture. It aims to provide a
regional case study of popular reactions to the war,
with particular reference to recent theories of
allegiance, which have emphasised the role played by
religion and culture.
Although the approach is broadly chronological,
religion and culture are discussed mainly in the first
half of the thesis, and popular allegiance in the
second.
Chapter One surveys popular religion and culture in
the region from c. 1603 to 1638. Chapter Two
characterises popular politics on the eve of the Civil
War. Chapter Three deals with popular religion and
culture in the late 1630s and during the war. In
particular, it considers whether or not distinct
cultural regions had evolved by this time, and the
nature and extent of popular puritanism and
'Anglicanism'.
Chapter Four provides a narrative of military
events in the region during the war, and discusses the
impact of the conflict on civilian communities. Chapter
Five describes the geographical pattern of allegiance,
through an analysis of military recruitment and
civilian reactions. Chapter Six considers what factors
may have motivated popular responses to the war.
It is argued that there was often a positive
response to the war, and that we must seek a multicausal
explanation of this phenomenon. In particular,
religio-cultural factors were a major influence. But it
is argued that religlo-cultural and societal factors
only partly explain the complex pattern of allegiance
that emerged. Emphasis is placed on the role of local,
contingent factors such as the distribution and
influence of propaganda, and the impact of plunder,
extortion and other products of a war which intruded
into most communities in the region.

Item Type:	Thesis or Dissertation (PhD)
Subjects:	D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Great Britain -- History -- Civil War, 1642-1649, England -- Midlands -- Social life and customs -- 17th century, England -- Midlands -- Religion -- 17th century, Allegiance -- England -- Midlands -- History -- 17th century
Official Date:	February 1993
Dates:	Date Event February 1993 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of History
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Capp, B. S.
Extent:	xiii, 459 leaves
Language:	eng

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