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Cover of Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell

Samuel Rawson Gardiner

Length
11 h 9 min
Chapters
14
Language
English
First published
1909

The following work gives within a short compass a history of Oliver Cromwell from a biographical point of view. The text has been revised by the author. (From the preface to the 1909 edition)

This biography considers closely both the actions and the motivations of Oliver Cromwell in the many roles he took on during his life. Gardiner is careful to put Cromwell into the context of his times -- turbulent, volatile and disorienting -- as the three Kingdoms of the Stuart dynasty were torn by bitter internal strife as well as making war upon each other. The author gives close attention to how Cromwell navigated the many crises he faced as an individual, as a member of parliament, as an officer in and then commander of the New Model Army, and finally leading the Commonwealth as Lord Protector.

The author, Samuel Rawson Gardiner, was a distinguished English historian who taught and wrote during the Victorian period. He focused his scholarly work on the history of Britain during the 17th century. He is regarded as one of the preeminent historians of the period, whose groundbreaking research into sources remains foundational for scholars of the period to the present day. - Summary by Tom Booker

Chapters

From LibriVox, read by volunteers and in the public domain. LibriVox page (opens librivox.org), the text (opens gutenberg.org), all files on the Internet Archive (opens archive.org).