The wars of the three kingdoms (1642-60)

Introduction

The Wars of the Three Kingdoms and the interaction of the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland have dominated many of the debates among early modern British historians over recent decades as part of the 'New British history'. Increased attention has been paid to the role of Irish and Scottish issues and how they impacted on the 'English' Civil War. For many historians of Scotland and Ireland working in this area, the eyes of historians of England have been drawn to their research and scholarly output. Furthermore, with the advent of the peace process in Northern Ireland and the parity of esteem between the two communities there has been a flourishing in 'Ulster Scots' studies.

This has been largely ignored in Scotland, but the nature of the links between Scotland and Ulster and the activities of those Scots and their descendants who settled there are being increasingly studied on the other side of the North Channel. The outbreak of the 1641 Ulster Rebellion and its aftermath has been controversial in early modern Irish history. The establishment and activities of the Irish Catholic Confederation at Kilkenny have been the focus of recent scholarly attention, but the Protestant minority has tended to be ignored. Robert Armstrong's thorough study makes a significant contribution to this historical imbalance (Robertson, 88).

Discussion

This book is a traditional research monograph that drives knowledge forward via detailed archive and manuscript research, yet these research findings are related to existing secondary literature and knowledge of the key primary sources of the period. No maps are provided. Armstrong's book provides a scholarly detailed contribution to the historiography of the War of/for the Three Kingdoms that have developed over recent years. Most of the scholarly interest will probably focus on the Dublin administration and its activities vis-a-vis Charles I, his parliamentary opponents at Westminster, divisions within English politics with regard to Ireland and the role that Ireland played, in the king's mind, for his cause in England.

New Model Army played a role in directing the political position of the parliamentarians during the wars of the three kingdoms (1642-60)

The canker of civil war and the festering theological dispute ordinance weakened consensus decision making. The self-denying ordinance, which accompanied the creation of the New Model Army, was an attempt to unify the parliamentary cause that had the opposite effect. The ouster of Parliament's old generals and Oliver Cromwell's exception from self-denial produced a factionalism that encouraged Political participation from agencies outside Parliament. The defence of parliamentary Privilege, which was a defence of the political process, weakened as the factional leaders became intent upon pressing their legislative solutions to the exclusion of their opponents'. This was the genesis of adversary Politics, the emergence of permanent Political parties in opposition to each other. Parliamentary procedure, under the impact of factional rivalry, was gradually transformed. By the autumn of 1646, Parties dominated the political process, and by the winter of 1647, Denzil Holles was the undisputed leader of a majority within and ...