Oliver Cromwell, a pivotal and often contentious character, has long been the focus of many historical works that chart his meteoric rise from being a middle-aged farmer from East Anglia with no previous military experience, who rose to command the army and become one of England’s greatest generals. Like him or loath him, Oliver Cromwell is a giant of English history. With a deft hand and strong narrative, Whitehead guides us through the remarkable life and career of Oliver Cromwell from a unique perspective. He explores not only the effect the women in Cromwell’s life had on him, but how his career in turn dramatically altered their lives. We learn of his close relationship with his mother, who lived with him throughout her long life, and of his deep attachment to his wife Elizabeth, who he married at 22 and without whom it is doubtful he would have achieved all he did.

Looks at how the lives of John Winthrop, governor of Massachusetts, and Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Puritan Commonwealth in England, were intertwined at a time of conflict between church and state and between Native and European Americans.

A West Virginia cop must determine who had an axe to grind with a notorious womanizer in this mystery series opener. Retirement is on the horizon for Det. Sam Lagarde of West Virginia’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations, and he’s looking forward to it. As a cop with a reputation for persistence, he’s earned some relaxation. But first, there’s the matter of a head . . . Ben Cromwell is discovered, decapitated, in a dumpster behind a Charles Town spa. A known regular at the regional jail, Cromwell was no stranger to trouble. He was also no stranger to the ladies. As Lagarde begins digging into the victim’s life, he finds five women with one thing in common: their hatred of Ben Cromwell. Determining which of them followed through on that feeling won’t be easy, but if Lagarde doesn’t lose his top, he’ll come out ahead . . . “Layer upon layer, Ms. Fite connects the dots between her well-defined and wonderfully diverse characters.” —Rochelle Wisoff-Fields, author of Please Say Kaddish for Me “[Ginny Fite] has no trouble delving into the dark side of people and showing us that evil exists.” —Katherine Cobb, author of Break Out the Dawn “Not your ordinary murder mystery! . . . I couldn’t put it down.” —Tonya Royston, author of Surrender at Sundown

“An exceptional and compelling biography about one of the Tudor Age’s most complex and controversial figures.” —Alison Weir Thomas Cromwell has long been reviled as a Machiavellian schemer who stopped at nothing in his quest for power. As King Henry VIII’s right-hand man, Cromwell was the architect of the English Reformation; secured Henry’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and plotted the downfall of his second wife, Anne Boleyn; and was fatally accused of trying to usurp the king himself. In this engrossing biography, acclaimed British historian Tracy Borman reveals a different side to one of history’s most notorious characters: that of a caring husband and father, a fiercely loyal servant and friend, and a revolutionary who was key in transforming medieval England into a modern state. Thomas Cromwell was at the heart of the most momentous events of his time—from funding the translation and dissemination of the first vernacular Bible to legitimizing Anne Boleyn as queen—and wielded immense power over both church and state. The impact of his seismic political, religious, and social reforms can still be felt today. Grounded in excellent primary source research, Thomas Cromwell gives an inside look at a monarchy that has captured the Western imagination for centuries and tells the story of a controversial and enigmatic man who forever changed the shape of his country. “An intelligent, sympathetic, and well researched biography.” —The Wall Street Journal “Borman unravels the story of Cromwell’s rise to power skillfully . . . If you want the inside story of Thomas Cromwell . . . this is the book for you.” —The Weekly Standard “An engrossing biography. . . . A fine rags-to-riches-to-executioner’s-block story of a major figure of the English Reformation.” —Kirkus Reviews “An insightful biography of a much-maligned historical figure.” —Booklist

You're mugged on the street. Your sister is attacked in her home. The police are powerless. What would you do? This is England. Gang violence is on the rise and people live in fear. After ex-solder-turned-preacher Ivor Jones is attacked, he decides to take matters into his own hands. Gathering together a group of like-minded citizens, Ivor forms the Cromwell Movement, inspired by his rebel hero Oliver Cromwell. Ivor and the Movement start to hit back at the gangs that have ruled their streets for too long, but, as with Cromwell, sometimes the best intentions lead to shocking results. After all, absolute power corrupts absolutely . . .

This study centres around three leading military statesmen who served under Oliver Comwell but were also his kin and shared the experiences of the civil wars, John Disbrowe (1608–80), Henry Ireton (1611–51), and Charles Fleetwood (1618–92). It seeks to develop our picture of their positions from the context of their kin link to Cromwell and how their private worlds shaped their public roles, how kinship was part of the functioning of the Cromwellian state, how they were seen and presented, and how this impacted on their own lives, and their kin, before and after the Restoration. Cromwell's career can be explored further by considering figures in his kinship network to show how the public and private overlapped and influenced each other through their interaction before and after 1660. This study aims to consider the trajectory of elements of Cromwell's network and how its functioning and the interaction of its constituent parts over time shaped the politics of the years 1643 to 1660 but also how the survival of some networks after 1660 were continuing communities of those willing to own their memories of the civil wars, regicide, and Cromwell. A study of aspects of Cromwell's kin also provides examples of the continuities between those who resisted the Stuarts in the 1640s and 1650s and did so again in the 1680s. Suitable for specialists in the area and students taking courses on early modern British, European and American history as well as those with a more general interest in the period.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1862.