Audiobook · read by volunteers
History of England, from the Accession of James II - (Volume 1, Chapter 05)
Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800–1859)
Read by Jim Mowatt, Kristin LeMoine, Sean McKinley, Tina Tilney, ianish, Christie Nowak, Sandra in Wales, United Kingdom, GarrettAuNaturale, Maddie, Cori Samuel · 21 chapters · 4 h 42
About the book
James II has been on the throne only a few months when rebellion breaks out. In Macaulay’s account, two exiles in Holland set off almost at once: the Earl of Argyle, who raises a Scottish force that falls apart into confusion, and the Duke of Monmouth, who lands in the west of England and proclaims himself king. What follows is told with the narrative drive for which Macaulay was famous: battles, betrayals, flights, captures and executions, and finally the harsh trials of the Bloody Assizes under the notorious Judge Jeffreys. This is history written as a story, vivid in portraits and unashamed in its judgments. Twenty-one parts and almost five hours of listening. If you like your past told with colour, argument and a real sense of drama, this chapter of The History of England is a rewarding place to begin.
Introduction
Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800–1859) was a politician, essayist and historian whose History of England from the Accession of James II, begun in the 1840s and first published from 1848, became one of the most widely read works of history in the Victorian age. He wrote in a confident, richly detailed style, and he saw history as a story of political progress that could hold the attention of ordinary readers. Macaulay’s chapter has the structure of a drama, with a rising action, a collision at Sedgemoor and a grim aftermath, and it is easy to follow even without any previous knowledge of the period.
This recording covers the fifth chapter of the first volume. It concerns the revolts against James II and his efforts to put them down. Argyle, an exile in Holland, returns to raise a Scottish force against the king, but brave as he is, he proves no leader of men, and his army dissolves into a rabble. He is captured and meets his death with courage. Monmouth, another exile in Holland, lands at Lyme in June 1685 and is proclaimed king at Taunton on the 20th. His rising ends in defeat at Sedgemoor, and he is caught and executed. The chapter ends with the Bloody Assizes and the notorious Judge Jeffreys. Macaulay is partisan, as modern historians readily point out, and his interpretations should be weighed with that in mind. Yet his command of narrative and his eye for character remain impressive.
The recording has 21 parts and lasts nearly five hours, read by a team of LibriVox volunteers.
It rewards listeners who enjoy a story of conspiracy, rebellion and consequence, told by a master of the form.
Public domain
Thomas Babington Macaulay died in 1859: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text