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The Levellers sought to restructure the state in 1647-9 around popular consent and liberty for conscience, especially in their Agreement of the People. Following the Levellers, Volume Two examines the later political efforts of Leveller spokesmen like John Lilburne, John Wildman, and Richard Overton, and their followers. Far from ending in the 1649 troop revolts, the Leveller impact continued in the Interregnum climacterics of 1653 and 1659-60, times of acute political and religious unsettlement. Indeed, Leveller ideas resurfaced in Restoration political and religious crises in 1678-83 and again in 1687-8 and flourished in populations that once followed the Levellers. Analysis of London, army, and county Levellers reveals connections to subsequent outbursts of unrest. Sectarian communities in London's peripheral neighbourhoods and nearby counties sustained the Leveller ethos, and ordinary people like those who followed the Levellers remained active in petitioning and protest about political and religious liberties through the Glorious Revolution.
List of contents
Chapter One: Introduction: Finding the Levellers and their Successors.- Chapter Two: The Levellers and the Commonwealth, 1649-53.- Chapter Three: Leveller Followers in London, the Army, and the Counties.- Chapter Four: Leveller Successors and the Protectorate, 1654-9.- Chapter Five: Leveller Successors and the Climacteric of 1659-60.- Chapter Six: The Leveller Ethos and the Restoration.- Chapter Seven: Leveller Successors of the 1680s.- Chapter Eight: Conclusion: Following the Levellers.
About the author
Gary S. De Krey is Emeritus Professor of History at St. Olaf College in Minnesota, USA. A past president of the Midwest Conference on British Studies, he has published two books about London politics in the late Stuart era (1660-1714) as well as
Restoration and Revolution in Britain (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007).
Summary
The Levellers sought to restructure the state in 1647-9 around popular consent and liberty for conscience, especially in their Agreement of the People. Following the Levellers, Volume Two examines the later political efforts of Leveller spokesmen like John Lilburne, John Wildman, and Richard Overton, and their followers. Far from ending in the 1649 troop revolts, the Leveller impact continued in the Interregnum climacterics of 1653 and 1659-60, times of acute political and religious unsettlement. Indeed, Leveller ideas resurfaced in Restoration political and religious crises in 1678-83 and again in 1687-8 and flourished in populations that once followed the Levellers. Analysis of London, army, and county Levellers reveals connections to subsequent outbursts of unrest. Sectarian communities in London’s peripheral neighbourhoods and nearby counties sustained the Leveller ethos, and ordinary people like those who followed the Levellers remained active in petitioning and protest about political and religious liberties through the Glorious Revolution.
Additional text
“The second volume engages extensively with Leveller ‘successors’ during the interregnum and Restoration. … The [volume] is thoughtfully structured and the straightforwardness of prose is effective.” (Edward Legon, Parliamentary History, Vol. 38 (3), 2019)
Report
"The second volume engages extensively with Leveller 'successors' during the interregnum and Restoration. ... The [volume] is thoughtfully structured and the straightforwardness of prose is effective." (Edward Legon, Parliamentary History, Vol. 38 (3), 2019)
