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This account of Hume's philosophy, differs from other books on the subject in two ways. First, Hume's philosophy is set in the context of his whole life's work in the study of "moral subjects" that is areas such as psychology, history, political science and economics. The second approach of this book is that it examines systematically the drastic consequences of accepting not one but three Cartesian presuppositions as "the obvious dictates of reason" which "no man, who reflects, ever doubted". Basically, Hume's starting point in philosophy was the position Descartes reached in Part IV of the "Discourse"; a position quite incomparible with any science, whether moral or natural. The consequences drawn by Hume can, however, be turned round to provide arguments to refute those presuppositions, which are today still widely accepted. ... Read more

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A brief and enlightening exploration of Hume's life and ideas, presented in entertaining and accessibleAmazon.com Review
David Hume (1711-1776), writes Paul Strathern, is "the onlyphilosopher whose ideas remain plausible to us today." Hume's mostsubstantial contribution to philosophy could be simplified as thedenial of the existence of anything but our own perceptions--or itcould be more subtly described as a realization of the contingency ofour knowledge of the world, where any explanation for phenomena--be itrooted in religion, science, or some other discipline--isuncertain. Strathern's short volume puts Hume's "extreme empiricism"and the rest of his career into perspective with the author's usualdry wit--as when he summarizes Hume's positions on miracles andsuicide as "no such thing" and "up to you." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Humane and human Hume kills off Philosophy
I have read a good share of Strathern's short works on the great philosophers. I have the feeling that the more interesting the life and character of the philosopher discussed the better the volume. For some reason Hume is for me a very interesting, and admirable character even though religiously I am totally on the other side of the fence. i.e. Strathern claims that Hume is the first philosopher who has the guts to come and say out and out that he is an atheist. I am a person who believes that without God not only I, but all of Humanity is lost.
In any case Strathern does a very good job of describing Hume's demolition of the idea of causality(There is sequence, before and after, without necessary connection between them) of continuity of objects, of induction( The fact that there has been night and day, night and day for so long as we know does not necessarily mean that the sun will come up tomorrow). He also does a wonderful job of providing the background to Hume's life in eighteenth century England. Hume whose greatest passion despite him in later years belonging to a group called 'The Eaterei' and being immensely corpulent was for ' literary fame' His first great work 'The Treatise on Human Nature' contained his major ideas but did not bring him the prize he sought.But by the time he wrote an'Enquiry on Human Understanding' he attained it. Also the author of a popular History of England Hume was that rare creature who achieves in his life precisely what he wanted to, and was famed, honored, celebrated and justly so.
This short work is a very good account of the life and clear exposition of those ideas, ideas which will make us forever think twice about, whether our world, and we ourselves are ' real 'or not.
But of course ' we are' and ' I wrote this review' and someone named 'Paul Strathern wrote a very good book ' about Hume.

Plenty of gossip; little information
Well, Strathern is certainly entertaining, if not informative. He gives us the dirt on each philosopher, tells us who was overweight, cheap, pushed people around, etc. This would be great if we were reading about movie stars or politicians but I bought these books in order to understand something about what these philosophers thought. He does reserve a few pages at the end of each volume to tells us one or two of their ideas and gives us a handful of quotes. A total waste of money unless you hate your philosophy classes so much that you want to hear how awful the personal lives of the philosophers were. A new low in publishing.

A History lesson on Hume
The sole purpose of the "90 minute" book seris is to give the reader a firm understanding of the subject at hand. Hume was a philospher so I was expecting "Hume in 90 minutes" to deal soley with Hume'sphilopshy. This was not always the case. The book reads more as a historylesson of Hume's life and the world around him, namly Britian in theeighteenth-century. I found the most informarive part of the book (whereHume's philosphy is discussed) is the last section where there containsexcerpts of what Hume wrote about concerning different subjects and topics.Strathern does a good job in showing the reader WHO Hume has influenced andHOW they have been influenced by him. The way Strathern shows the effectsthat Hume has had on modern scienece is also very successful. Overall,"Hume in 90 minutes" is a good way of learning about Hume's lifebut it lacks the philosopical insight that I was hoping to find before Iread the book. The book is an enjoyable read and I recommend the "90minute" seris to anyway that wants to learn more about the lives andtimes of differnt philosophers. ... Read more

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This book explores the reception of David Hume's political thought in eighteenth-century America. It presents a challenge to standard interpretations that assume Hume's thought had little influence in early America. Eighteenth-century Americans are often supposed to have ignored Hume's philosophical writings and to have rejected entirely Hume's "Tory" History of England. James Madison, if he used Hume's ideas in Federalist No. 10, it is commonly argued, thought best to do so silently--open allegiance to Hume was a liability. Despite renewed debate about the impact of Hume's political ideas in America, existing scholarship is often narrow and highly speculative. Were Hume's works available in eighteenth-century America? If so, which works? Where? When? Who read Hume? To what avail? To answer questions of that sort, this books draws upon a wide assortment of evidence. Early American book catalogues, periodical publications, and the writings of lesser-light thinkers are used to describe Hume's impact on the social history of ideas, an essential context for understanding Hume's influence on many of the classic texts of early American political thought. Hume's Essays and Treatises on Several Subjects, was readily available, earlier, and more widely, than scholars have supposed. The History of England was read most frequently of all, however, and often in distinctive ways. Hume's History, which presented the British constitution as a patch-work product of chance historical developments, informed the origins of the American Revolution and Hume's subsequent reception through the late eighteenth century. The 326 subscribers to the first American edition of Hume's History (published in Philadelphia in 1795/96) are more representative of the History's friendly reception in enlightened America than are its few critics. Thomas Jefferson's latter-day rejection of Hume's political thought foreshadowed Hume's falling reputation in nineteenth-century America. ... Read more

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David Hume (1711-1776) is perhaps best known for his treatises on problems of epistemology, skepticism, and causation. A less familiar side of his intellectual output is his work on legal and political theory. David Hume's Political Theory brings together Hume's diverse writings on law and government, collected and examined with a view to revealing the philosopher's coherent and persuasive theory of politics.

Through close textual analysis, Neil McArthur suggests that the key to Hume's political theory lies in its distinction between barbarous and civilized government. Throughout the study, the author explores Hume's argument that a society's progress from barbarism to civilization depends on the legal and political system by which it is governed. Ultimately, McArthur demonstrates that the skepticism apparent in much of Hume's work does not necessarily tie him to a strict conservative ideology; rather, Hume's political theory is seen to emphasize many liberal virtues as well.

Based on a new conception of Hume's political philosophy, this is a groundbreaking work and a welcome addition to the existing literature.

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Philosophy is one of the most intimidating and difficult of disciplines, as any of its students can attest. This book is an important entry in a distinctive new series from Routledge: The Great Philosophers. Breaking down obstacles to understanding the ideas of history's greatest thinkers, these brief, accessible, and affordable volumes offer essential introductions to the great philosophers of the Western tradition from Plato to Wittgenstein. In just 64 pages, each author, a specialist on his subject, places the philosopher and his ideas into historical perspective. Each volume explains, in simple terms, the basic concepts, enriching the narrative through the effective use of biographical detail. And instead of attempting to explain the philosopher's entire intellectual history, which can be daunting, this series takes one central theme in each philosopher's work, using it to unfold the philosopher's thoughts. ... Read more

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An accessible and vast overview to the vastness of Hume's thought...
Many of Routledge's "The Great Philosophers" volumes take one or two aspects of a philosopher and develops those themes as long as 50 to 60 pages will allow. This method has pros and cons. It does allow some detail, but with a lack of comprehensiveness. Often only a brief glimpse of a philosopher appears. "Hume" takes a completely different direction. What it lacks in detail it more than makes up for in comprehensiveness. It gives a more sweeping glance at Hume's entire philosophical output, not just one or two fractions of it. Given the space provided, this represents quite an achievement in summarization. Not only that, nearly half of the book comprises passages from Hume's books. These reinforce the philosophical descriptions in the best way possible: through Hume's own words.

Every major facet of Hume's thought has a dedicated section: epistemology ("Impressions" and "Ideas"), causation (we can't rationally justify it), justification of the material world (similar to causation), the idea of the self (the author disagrees with Hume on some points), Hume as "skeptic" (the author thinks this claim is overstated), morality (the "passions"), politics (Hume was not a revolutionary, a democrat or a pure liberal), and religion (posthumous dialogues against argument from design). The tiny epilogue even mentions Hume's more obscure economic and aesthetic work. The book also starts with a biography and philosophical survey of Hume's scope, influence, and contemporary depiction. Hume was an empiricist through and through. This decreased his influence in his own time, but boosted it in the 20th century. He was best known as a historian until Analytical philosophy took notice a few hundred years later. Academics up to that point had tended to dislike his methods. Thus he was ignored in philosophic circles. Now, of course, as this series more than demonstrates, Hume sits amongst the "great philosophers."

Hume struggled with thinking about the world versus experiencing the world. As the section on "Scepticism" discusses, this vacillation caused Hume both misery and joy. But Hume speaks better for himself in an included passage from "Treatise of Human Nature." He describes how these "manifold contradictions and imperfections" make him "ready to reject all reasoning." As he agonizes over who, or what he or anything else is, despair seeps in. But "life" comes to the rescue: "Most fortunately it happens, that reason in incapable of dispelling these clouds, Nature herself suffices to that purpose... I dine, I play a game of backgammon, I converse, and am merry with my friends...." Following these happy distractions, Hume returns to his philosophical ruminations and finds "these speculations, they appear so cold, and strained, and ridiculous, that I cannot find in my heart to enter into them any further." Rarely do philosophers speak so candidly or directly (or movingly) of their own experience inside or outside of the "classroom." Hume bashed his head right into some of the universe's most perplexing questions. He came out okay (if not a little "horizontally challenged" as some have claimed). This little book provides a great introduction to the girth of Hume's very analytic, but nonetheless very human, philosophy.

Ideal introduction to Hume
It is unfortunate that many of the other books in the Routledge Great Philosophers series do not follow the same pattern as Quinton's HUME, because this particular book is a model of what a brief introduction to a philosopher should be. Quinton offers short summaries of David Hume's life, his philosophical assumptions, and his views on causation, material things, the self, scepticism, morality and the passions, politics, and religion, with each summary followed by a list of relevant quotes from Hume's various works. Reading this book is an ideal way to orient oneself before engaging in a deeper study of Hume. ... Read more

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David Hume's great, enduring reputation in philosophy tends to obscure the fact that, among his contemporaries, his history of England was a more successful work. The history covers almost 1800 years. Hume saw English history as an evolution from a government of will to a government of law. Advanced in Hume's masterly prose, this argument continues to make the "History" a valuable study for the modern reader. This Liberty Fund edition is based on the edition of 1778, the last to contain corrections by Hume. The typography has been modernized for ease of reading. Hume's own index to the entire work may be found at the conclusion of volume VI. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

When Whigs and Tories really mattered
Hume's massive work of English history is available in this economical and well-bound paperback edition. While somewhat out-of-date by the standards of modern academic historians, and prolix at times, Hume's history remains entertaining for contemporary readers, by virtue of the classical elegance of his prose, the scepticism and even-handedness of his judgments, and his sharp thematic focus on the evolution and delineation of powers in the English constitution. Hume's history is clearly a product of the Enlightenment: the only thing he finds more contemptible than the arbitrary powers at times exercised by monarchy and aristocracy is political encroachment by religious zeal and fanaticism. His narrative is most compelling in Volumes 5 and 6, those documenting the convulsions of the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. These were in fact written first. Volumes 1 and 2 were written last, probably for the sake of completeness, and with a clear sense of pain by Hume, who feels that the primitive societies of ancient and medieval England are least instructive to the civilized reader.

Bertrand Russell, in his history of philosophy, jokingly accuses Hume of preferring Scots to Englishmen, and Tories to Whigs, with some injustice. The dismal, intolerant and conceited fanaticism of the lowland Scots Presbyterians is a particular target of Hume's invective and mockery, and the Scots Highlanders (with the Irish) are usually dismissed as barbarians. On the other hand, possibly the only two characters to appear in a heroic light in the entire six volumes are William Wallace ("Braveheart") and James Graham, marquise of Montrose, dashing royalist general of the English Civil War. While he certainly deplores the usurpations of Cromwell, whom he paints with bold, vivid and unflattering strokes, Hume is also clearly in favor of quite limited executive (ie, royal) power, and writes as a man of history, not of party.

History for scholars of history and literature
First let me note that this edition of Hume's "History" by the Liberty Fund offers excellent value for your money. The six volumes are well-edited and well-printed books for book lovers.
For more than a hundred years, Hume's text, first published in the 1750s, was a standard textbook on British history. His diction is elegant, superbly paced and offers delightful reading. However, Hume did not concentrate on exciting descriptions of battles and intrigues, as Macaulay did a century later. He wanted to show that English history had always striven to implement a constitutional monarchy, and so his narrative follows this lead, up to a highly partial depiction of the fates of Charles II and Oliver Cromwell. Hume's liberal ideology made him write a story that stresses the success of parliament. As a philosopher of the Enlightenment, he described the sorry state of the arts and science (elucidated in several ndependent chapters). Thus, his work will give you valuable, if biased insights into the development of the British nation up to the Glorious Revolution in the 1680s. If you read this work carefully, I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Entertaining & Learned -- quite difficult to put down
Volume II covers the period 1216-1485.

With a careful and seemingly fair hand, Hume describes the clashes between the barons and King John, as evolved into the Magna Charta; the first appearance of the house ofCommons; the subjection of Wales, the attempts to subdue Scotland, withportraits of Robert Bruce & Braveheart William Wallace; the expulsionof the Jews; the charter to dig coal in Newcastle; the Hundred Years' War,with smart sketches of its major conflicts; the first appearance of thetitle of "duke"; the conflict between the Yorks and Lancasters,in the War of the Roses; the myth of Joan of Arc is described, &Richard, earl of Warwick, the Kingmaker, the last baron to overawe thecrown, is portrayed; and, among the last episodes of the volume, theusurpation of the crown by the earl of Glocester, later Richard III, uncleto the heirs of the throne, who has the little princes committed to theTower, and then strangled. Richard meets his just rewards at the battle ofBosworth, where he is slain.

A wonderful read, covering a period betweenthe first appearances of national government and the age when it begins tosolidify, in forms that we might recognize today. The turbulence of theDark and Middle Ages becomes enlightened as we approach the Renaissance.

Lucid but concise -- covers 1,200 years
Hume's philosophy works, I admit, have choked my senses and discouraged my interest in ever handling another of his volumes, yet this historical work, comprehensive over twelve centuries, from the Roman province through thereign of King John and the Magna Charta, is, for history buffs, quitedifficult to put down. Hume covers only that history which pertains toEnglish history, and with his reference materials so scarce, we reach the8th century by page 40. Hume covers the passing of the Romans, thelicentiousness of the Saxons after they were invited to protect the nativeBritons, the irresistible conquests of the Danes, the consolidations of theminor kingdoms, the ways of life of these various peoples, the Normaninvasion, the politics at court, and the personalities of the variousprinces, with startling particulars, both in speech, action and theincipience of national government, from the lives of its centralcharacters.

Hume speaks lucidly of the manners, customs, and religiousbeliefs of the periods he covers, as well as their evolution throughtime.

A fascinating read for anyone interested in early English history! ... Read more

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Scottish philosopher David Hume claimed that false philosophy leads either to melancholy over the groundlessness of common opinion or delirium over transcending it--while true philosophy leads to wisdom. Here Donald Livingston traces this distinction through all of Hume's writings and reveals its relevance for contemporary discussion. ... Read more

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Not your grandfather's David Hume
This is an extremely stimulating and interesting rereading of Hume's works. Departing from the standard reading of Hume as a proto-logical positivist, Livingston draws out the points of connection between Hume and the ancient conception of philosophy as a way of life, as well as other thinkers, such as Vico, Gadamer, Oakeshott, and Wittgenstein, who were skeptical of the Enlightenment's tendencies toward abstract "rationalism." In the process, Livingston shows how Hume would have responded to some of the postmodern age's more egregious folly. Admittedly, this book could have used some pruning, for Livingston makes many of the same points over and over again. Moreover, Livingston uses Humean claims to defend the South's secession during the Civil War, a questionable use of Hume to say the least. But the work as a whole repays rereading and contemplation, and it'll definitely encourage you to read "le bon David" with a fresh eye. ... Read more

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Many recent books on Hume have concentrated only on particular issues in his philosophy and have presented at best a fragmentary picture. This study, which is intelligible to the virtual beginner in philosophy as well as being of interest to Hume scholars and to philosophers dealing with the problems he discussed, offers a more consistent, unified interpretation and emphasizes the interest and importance of Hume's views for philosophers today. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not for the Hume novice
I bought this book because I wanted a short, clear, well-written overview of Hume's philosophy. Unfortunately this book isn't what I expected.
First, this isn't a general overview. The author goes into a great deal of detail on some points (such as Hume's theories of perception), while other major aspects of Hume's thought are totally ignored (such as his views of religion). And the prose is far from simple. Rather than simply describing Hume's arguments, the author engages and critiques the ideas at length. This is complicated stuff, and it takes quite a bit of effort to follow the arguments.
If you want to know about Hume's major theories in great detail, you might be interested in this book. But if you just want an introduction to Hume, you should definitely look elsewhere.

A Great Introduction to a Difficult Philosopher
This is a beautifully written expose of Hume's philosophy; it is clear, well-presented, and extremely useable.Professor Stroud is to be commended for this addition to the series.Having a theological background--philosophy is sometimes difficult for me to make sense of--this book helped me feel less obtuse about David Hume and his philosophy.It is nicely thought out, laid out, and presented in terms the regular person can understand, particularly if they are working through philosophy on their own.A book well worth the money! ... Read more

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Hume’s Political Discourses (1752) won immediate acclaim and positioned him as an authoritative figure on the subject of political economy. This volume of thirteen new essays definitively establishes the central place of political economy in Hume’s intellectual endeavor, as well as the profound and far-reaching influence of his theories on Enlightenment discourse and practice. A major strength of this collection is that the contributors come from a diverse set of fields – philosophy, economics, political science, history and literature. This promotes a comprehensive reading of Hume’s political economy, taking into account his entire set of writings and correspondence, in a way that captures his polymathic genius. Hume’s analyses of trade and commerce not only delve into the institutions of money and markets, but also human agency, the role of reason and the passions, manners and social mores. Hume sought general principles but also concrete applications, whether he grappled with the problem ofeconomic development (Scotland and Ireland), with the debates on luxury consumption (France), or with the mounting public debt (England).

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A Collection of essays from famous Scottish philosopher David Hume, one of the most prominent figures of the Scottish Enlightenment and a close friend of Adam Smith. Hume's contributions to economics are found mostly in his Political Discourses (1752), which were later incorporated into his Essays (1758). ... Read more

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In this compelling analysis David Pears examines the foundations of Hume's theory of the mind as presented in the first book of the Treatise.Past studies have tended to take one of two extreme views: that Hume relies exclusively on a theory of meaning, or that he relies exclusively on a theory of truth and evidence.Steering a middle course between these positions, Pears argues that Hume's theory of ideas serves both functions.He examines in detail its application to three difficult problems: causation, personal identity, and sense perception. Hume's solutions, Pears argues, are not theories that can be given a place in standard classification of philosophical theories, but rather depend upon a subtle form of naturalism not altogether unlike Wittgenstein's naturalism.A clearly written and argued study, Hume's System will be of special interest to students and scholars of the history of philosophy. ... Read more

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David Johnson seeks to overthrow one of the widely accepted tenets of Anglo-American philosophy--that of the success of the Humean case against the rational credibility of reports of miracles. In a manner unattempted in any other single work, he meticulously examines all the main variants of Humean reasoning on the topic of miracles: Hume's own argument and its reconstructions by John Stuart Mill, J. L. Mackie, Antony Flew, Jordan Howard Sobel, and others.

Hume's view, set forth in his essay "Of Miracles," has been widely thought to be correct. Johnson reviews Hume's thesis with clarity and elegance and considers the arguments of some of the most prominent defenders of Hume's case against miracles. According to Johnson, the Humean argument on this topic is entirely without merit, its purported cogency being simply a philosophical myth. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Completely unconvincing
The author claims that Hume's arguments in his discussion of miracles are circular. I find no merit in them author's claim whatsoever. It is utterly unconvincing. All Hume claimed was that hearsay regarding a miracle's occurrence is weaker evidence than our collective and universal experience to the contrary. His second point is that weaker evidence cannot overthrow stronger.

Hume claims that, given what we know about the world, people don't come back from the dead. Hearsay evidence of a claim to the contrary is weaker evidence than the collective and universal experience of mankind, that people don't come back from the dead. It seems awfully risky to put people to death if they're just going to get right back up after a couple days and come after you. "Dead men tell no tales" is not an old maxim without good reason. The debate over capital punishment would seem somehow less urgent if we could have resurrections at will. Yet Johnson somehow sees Hume's argument as "circular". Hmmmmm. Really? Now how is that again, Mr Johnson? Circular? The universal and collective experience of mankind is that dead is dead. Hearsay to the contrary is meaningless in the face of such. Dracula and zombie undead are fictional, and they are entertaining fictions, but fictions they remain.

A masterful critique of Hume's argument against miracles and religious testimony
In this masterful work, David Johnson, philosopher, logician and pedagogue par excellence delivers a coup de grace to Hume's well known argument against miracles and religious testimony. This book offers invaluable insights into the philosophy of religion, philosophy of testimony, probability theory and beyond. A must read for any serious student of philosophy. Johnson's clarity and meticulousness in philosophical method and writing is rare in todays philosophical arena, an arena characterized by the very same ambiguous rhetoric devoid of cogent logic which led David Hume to the abject failures elucidated in this expert analysis.

Hume's Miracle of Rhetoric
Johnson's bottom line is that insofar as Hume's argument against miracles is persuasive, it's a triumph of rhetoric over reason. What's surprising, in Johnson's view, is just how wide the triumph has been. Nonetheless, Johnson argues convincingly, when Hume and his followers argue that no testimony could ever establish a miracle, they invariably end up begging one question or another. For example, Flew argues that in interpreting the "detritus of the past" -- including reports of miracles -- the "critical historian" must always give priority to the stock of natural laws we take ourselves to have established. The upshot is supposed to be that in any contest between science and history, history is bound to lose. But as Johhson points out, the experimental reports underlying our beliefs about the laws of nature are themselves part of this "detritus of the past." That means our belief in laws of nature depends on our belief that certain historical events have actually occurred -- a belief based on testimony.

Johnson himself accepts that various biblical miracles actually occurred, but one need not be a believer to take his point. And his point is that if we are allowed to take all our knowledge into account (that's the bit about holism), it would be very strange if a purely philosophical argument could show that NO testimony could possibly make it reasonable to believe in a miracle.

When you think about it, this is a rather modest conclusion. It's similar to the conclusion that John Earman arrives at in _Hume's Abject Failure_, though Earman's issues and arguments are more technical. Indeed, one is inclined to apply Hume's own slogan and say that a those who accept the Humean view ought to be conscious of a continuing miracle in their own persons, persuading them to accept something contrary to philosophical good sense, if not to custom and experience. ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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The book has no illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Volume: 3; Original Publisher: G. Cowie; Publication date: 1825; Subjects: Great Britain; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Covers the period 1485 - 1558 AD
Hume describes, as usual, in pithy and concise English, the events from Bosworth Field, in 1485, which led directly to the coronation of Henry VII, to the coronation of Henry VIII, who is the central figure in this volume,which might arguably serve as Henry's biography.

In this period, we learnhow Henry VII formed close alliances with Ferdinand of Aragon, the wealthyprince of Spain, whose daughter, the Infanta Catherine, at 18 years of age,was first betrothed to the future king's elder brother Arthur (16 yearsold); but when Arthur dies, Henry, not wishing to return the dowry of200,000 ducats, dumps Catherine onto his younger son, the future Henry VIII(who is 12 at this time). This fact alone might have caused much of theresentment toward the queen, whom Henry later divorced.

These incidents,the "divorce" of the monarch, the break with Rome, the tightropewalked by Henry between catholicism and the Lutheran principles, thegrowing power and wealth of Spain, the rivalries and jealousies betweenthat nation and England and France; the growth and spread of protestantreform; Henry's absolute control over the government, his arbitrary andruthless rule over the people, who esteemed him highly; his death, and theaccession of Edward VI, and later, Mary, who reversed the policies of herfather, and married Philip II of Spain, a catholic monarch; and Mary'sdeath, and the succession of Elizabeth, close the volume.

As this volumebecomes more particular than its predecessors, and covers a period oflittle more than 70 years, its detail somewhat hampers the flow of events,whereas the first two volumes were more general.

Still, an excellent workof history, and a very good read. ... Read more

Product Description
This book an EXACT reproduction of the original book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more