Aristocrats, Plebeians and Revolution in England 1640-1660 - Brian Manning

The English Civil War is both a pivotal event in British History, and one of its most controversial subjects. The Civil War paved the way for the Industrial Revolution a century later, and so to the society of today. Traditionally the events of 1640 to 1660 - the collapse of government, civil war and revolution - have been attributed to divisions within the ruling class and, as a consequence , historians have mostly confined studies to the nobility and gentry. Yet, what of the role of the vast majority of "ordinary people"?;This volume summarizes the key events of the period focusing on both the actions of the ruling class, as well as those of the popular movements and revolts. He challenges the view that the revolution can be explained satisfactorily in terms of discord within the political elites of the time. The author interprets the English Revolution in terms of interactions between the aristorcracy, the "middle sort" and the "people", arguing that the popular movements often had a decisive influence, and that the crucial conflict was probably between people of the middling sort and the aristocrats.