The New Model Army: In England, Scotland and Ireland, 1645-1653 - Hardcover

Ian Gentles

4.33

6 ratings by Goodreads

9780631158691: The New Model Army: In England, Scotland and Ireland, 1645-1653

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0631158693 ISBN 13: 9780631158691

Publisher: Wiley–Blackwell, 1991

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This is an account of one of the most formidable fighting forces ever assembled. Taking his evidence from contemporary sources, Ian Gentles describes the formation of the New Model Army under Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell, the course of its decisive victories over the royalist forces of Charles 1 and its ferociously successful campaigns against the Scots and the Irish. The author gives a vivid account of the course of the major battles and of the innovative tactics employed by Fairfax and Cromwell. As importantly, he also examines the motivations and aspirations of the soldiers and their officers. For this was no ordinary army, but one convinced that it was acting under divine guidance, not merely to win a war, but to change the very nature of English society. In 1649, with the execution of the king and the abolition of the House of Lords, it must have appeared as if they had done so. Yet the question of how far the New Model was a revolutionary army and how far a body of men whose religious passion was manipulated for the pragmatic, personal or even conservative aims of its leaders is one that has occupied the minds of historians for three centuries. Ian Gentles provides a convincing resolution of this debate, raising new evidence to support his argument.

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Review:

"A masterly achievement, and renders all previous works on the creation and early years of the army obsolete." The Times

"A meticulously researched book which will supersede all previous work on the New Model Army." Times Literary Supplement

"The publication of Ian Gentles′s account of the New Model Army is an event of major importance in civil war studies. His book is awesomely well researched. What emerges is a very fine work indeed." Economic History Review

"... an outstanding teaching tool... an excellent survey of the army that won the civil war. The clarity of Gentles′ prose, and his ability to make sense of a profoundly chaotic period, ensure that this reviewer′s students will find the paperback on the required reading list next term." Reviews of Books

From the Back Cover:

The New Model Army was one of the most formidable fighting forces ever assembled. Taking his evidence from contemporary sources, Ian Gentles describes its formation under Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell, their innovative tactics, the course of its decisive victories over the forces of Charles I, and its ferociously successful campaigns against the Scots and the Irish. As importantly, he examines the motivations and aspirations of the soldiers and their officers.
The question of how far the New Model was a revolutionary army and how far a body of men whose religious passion was manipulated for the pragmatic, personal, or even conservative aims of its leaders is one that has occupied the minds of historians for three centuries. Ian Gentles provides a convincing resolution of this debate, raising new evidence to support his argument.

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