Society and Puritanism in Pre-Revolutionary England

by Christopher Hill

Christopher Hill suggests that there might have been non-theological reasons for supporting the Puritans, or for being a Puritan. He shows Puritanism as a living faith, answering the hopes and fears of yeoman and gentleman, merchants and artisans.

Genres: History, Religion, Christianity, Nonfiction, British Literature

464 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1964

About the author

John Edward Christopher Hill was the pre-eminent historian of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century English history, and one of the most distinguished historians of recent times. Fellow historian E.P. Thompson once referred to him as the dean and paragon of English historians.

He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford. During World War II, he served in the Russian department of the British Foreign Office, returning to teach at Oxford after the war.

From 1958-1965 he was University Lecturer in 16th- and 17th-century history, and from 1965-1978 he was Master of Balliol College. He was a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and of the British Academy. He received numerous honorary degrees over the course of his career, including the Hon. Dr. Sorbonne Nouvelle in 1979.

Hill was an active Marxist and a member of the Communist Party from approximately 1934-1957, falling out with the Party after the Soviet suppression of the Hungarian uprisings of 1956.

In their obituary, The Guardian wrote of Hill:

"Christopher Hill…was the commanding interpreter of 17th-century England, and of much else besides.…it was as the defining Marxist historian of the century of revolution, the title of one of the most widely studied of his many books, that he became known to generations of students around the world. For all these, too, he will always be the master." [http://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/...]

Reviews

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given that he was writing long before the age of digitisation, Christopher Hill's mastery of the relevant literature was truly impressive. While he repeats the myth that John Calvin played bowls on the Sabbath, which Chris Coldwell has long since debunked, it is still a great book.

[David C Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hill is one of the greats but in this one I think he gets a little lost in his source material. He knows so much of the literature of the 17th century that he has the habit of stringing together quotations with very little commentary so that he almost disappears as the organizing eye. In the chapters on preaching and lecturing, for instance, the argument that both are important is made repetitively as Hill piles on the quotes.

[Finlay · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book. Each chapter with a strong thesis, incredibly well evidenced, contributing to the books overall thesis.

Hill is keen to make allusions to contemporary society. His understanding of the revolutionary change in culture through networks and the exchange of information might aptly be applied to social media. Its first head reared in Tahrir Square and left-wing populism across Europe; its second in the drive for authoritarian democracy across Europe and the US today.