The Civil Wars

This illustrated military history of the British and Irish Civil Wars offers an integrated account of the conflict that engulfed the kingdoms ruled by Charles I after 1638. On the one hand, it analyzes the interactions between the Stuart kingdoms and compares and contrasts their wartime experiences; while on the other, it outlines the various civil wars which were fought within Scotland, Ireland, and England during the 1640s. This volume, with contributions by nine leading historians of 17th-century Britain and Ireland, explains why Charles I lost the "Wars of the Three Kingdoms" and how the English parliament reduced Ireland and Scotland to its authority after 1649. Throughout it examines how troops were raised, trained, clothed, armed, fed, and paid, the strategies adopted by the protagonists fighting in the various theatres of war, and the tactics used by their generals in combat. What role did siege warfare play in shaping the course of events? What contribution did seapower make to the conduct of the wars on land? What impact did a decade of brutal conflict have on the populations of England, Ireland and Scotland, especially on the women and children?
This book is intended for general readership and academic (any course on Stuart history or 17th-century British history for sixth-form students and 1st/2nd-year undergraduates).