A collection of essays on the theme of Tudor and Stuart Devon. Subjects studied include Katherine Courtney, Countess of Devon; tinworking in four Devon stannaries; the legislative activities of local MPs during the reign of Elizabeth; landed society and the emergence of the country house; North Devon maritime enterprise; English wine imports, with special reference to the Devon ports- fishing and the commercial world of early Stuart Dartmouth; the clergy in Devon, 1641-1661.

Why should one study urban history? Were towns the precipitating element for change in the human way of life? By examining in turn various aspects of urban history in the period 1500-1700 this book attempts to examine recent historical ideas about towns in Britain. Was the urban system in Britain a relative failure or a comparative success? What changes took place in the level of urbanization in Britain? What were the dynamics of change? What explains the appearance of new towns and the decline of once flourishing settlements? Was the growing size of some towns fuelled by new or considerably altered functions? Towns in Tudor and Stuart Britain provides students with a wide range of material on a fascinating subject.

This book offers a fresh understanding of the substance behind the rhetoric of English Renaissance monarchy. Propaganda is identified as a key factor in the intensification of the English state. The Tudor royal image is pursued in all its forms: in print and prayer, in iconography andarchitecture. The monarchy surrounded itself with the trappings of majesty at court, but in the shires it relied on different strategies of persuasion to uphold its authority. The Reformation placed the provincial pulpit at the disposal of the crown, and the church became the main conduit of royalpropaganda. Sermons taught the duty of obedience, and parish prayer was redirected from local saints towards the sovereign as the symbolic core of the nation.Dr Cooper examines the relationship between the Tudor monarchy and its subjects in Cornwall and Devon, and the complex interaction between local and national political culture. These were years of social and religious upheaval, during which the western peninsula witnessed three major rebellions,and many more riots and affrays. A vibrant popular religion was devastated by the Protestant Reformation, and foreign invasion was a frequent threat. Cornwall remained recognizably different from England in its ancient language and traditions. Yet in the midst of all this, popular allegiance tomonarchy and nation survived and prospered. The Tudors were mourned and celebrated in towns and parish churches. Loyalty was fostered by the Duchy of Cornwall and the stannaries. Regional difference, far from undermining the power of the crown, was fundamental to its success in the westcountry.This is a study of government at the dangerous edges of Tudor England, and a testament to the unifying power of propaganda.

This series of e-Books will chiefly be of interest to family historians with Devon ancestry. This ninth volume contains information about how the politics and trade of Devon may have affected our ancestors. It also contains information on Dartmoor and the semi-moorland parish of South Brent and genealogical charts and notes regarding the Trist families at South Brent.

The Garden History of Devon is a reference guide to historical sources for over 200 Devon gardens. It also provides an introduction for would-be garden historians on how to conduct garden research. The book is the result of an exploration of the archival resources of Devon's garden history; the objective being to provide signposts to research material for those interested in the development of Devon's gardens. The entries, arranged alphabetically, begin with a brief section describing each garden's history, amplified by quotations from contemporary travellers and diarists; following the descriptive sections are listings of documents, printed sources and illustrations relating to each garden. The greater part of this material is unknown to garden historians.

Reveals a much neglected strand of puritan theology which emphasised the importance of inner happiness and personal piety.

A study of the flourishing market for horses in pre-industrial England.

This new Companion is an invaluable guide to one of the most colourful periods in history. Covering everything from the Reformation, controversies over the succession and the prayer book to literature, the family and education, this highly accessible reference tool contains commentary on the key events in the reigns of the five Tudor monarchs from Henry VII to Elizabeth I. Opening with a general introduction, it includes a wealth of chronologies, biographies, statistics, and maps, as well as a glossary and a guide to the key works in the field. Topics covered include: The establishment of the Tudor dynasty; monarchs and their consorts; rebellions against the Tudors The legal system- central and ecclesiastical courts Government- central and local; the Monarchy and Parliament The Church – structure and changes throughout this tumultuous period Ireland- timeline of key events Population- numbers and distribution The World of Learning- education; literature; religion The key debates in the field. This book will be essential reading for all those with an interest in the Tudor Age.

This book chronicles the expansion and creation of new public spheres in and around Parliament in the early Stuart period. It focuses on two closely interconnected narratives: the changing nature of communication and discourse within parliamentary chambers and the interaction of Parliament with the wider world of political dialogue and the dissemination of information. Concentrating on the rapidly changing practices of Parliament in print culture, rhetorical strategy, and lobbying during the 1620s, this book demonstrates that Parliament not only moved toward the center stage of politics but also became the center of the post-Reformation public sphere. Theater of State begins by examining the noise of politics inside Parliament, arguing that the House of Commons increasingly became a place of noisy, hotly contested speech. It then turns to the material conditions of note-taking in Parliament and how and the public became aware of parliamentary debates. The book concludes by examining practices of lobbying, intersections of the public with Parliament within Westminster Palace, and Parliament's expanding print culture. The author argues overall that the Crown dispensed with Parliament because it was too powerful and too popular.

Rural England's Great Rebuilding of 1570-1640, first identified by W.G. Hoskins in 1953, has been vigorously debated ever since. Some critics have re-dated it on a regional basis. Still more have seen Great Rebuildings around every corner, causing them to dismiss Hoskins's thesis. In this first full-length study of the rebuilding phenomenon, Colin Platt, an accomplished architectural and social historian, addresses these issues and presents a persuasive fresh assessment of the legacy of this revolution in housing design. Although accepting Hoskins's definition of a first Great Rebuilding, starting with the 1570s and ending in the devastations of the Civil War, the author argues convincingly for a more influential "second" Great Rebuilding after peace had returned.; In examining architectural change both in the buildings themselves and through the writings of discerning contemporaries, today's family house, whether in town or country, is shown to owe almost nothing to the Middle Ages. Instead, its origins lie in the increasingly sophisticated world of the Tudor and Jacobean courts, in the refined taste of returned travellers, and in a growing popular demand for personal privacy, unobtainable in houses of medieval plan.; This fascinating and challenging study of changing tastes marks an important contribution to our understanding of Tudor and Stuart society and as such will not only be welcomed by students and historians of early modern England but by the interested general reader.