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 5 was unfinished at the author's death; the text was edited by Macaulay's sister, Lady Trevelyan, and published in 1861. It covers the period from 1697 until 1702, and includes a description of the death, in 1702, of William, regarded by Lady Trevelyan as her brother's hero.
| ISBN: | 9781108036054 |
| Publication date: | 10th November 2011 |
| Author: | Thomas Babington Macaulay |
| Publisher: | Cambridge University Press |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 412 pages |
| Series: | Cambridge Library Collection - British & Irish History, 17th & 18th Centuries |
| Genres: |
European history |