3 Review(s)

Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-59) was one of the foremost nineteenth-century historians in the Whig tradition, which saw history as a series of developments towards enlightenment and democracy. He believed that the 'Glorious Revolution' of 1688 had preserved England from the constitutional upheavals suffered by much of Europe in 1848. Using a wider range of sources, including popular literature, than was then usual, and written in an accessible, novelistic rather than academic style, this five-volume work proved hugely influential upon contemporary historians and phenomenally successful with the public, although it was not without its critics. Volume 3, published in 1855, examines the succession of William and Mary, and the constitutional arrangements made for their coronation. It deals with the wars in Ireland and Scotland, and resistance to William in England, particularly among the dissenting clergy.