History of England [6-Volume Set] [Paperback]

David Hume (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1985 | ISBN-10: 0865970203 | ISBN-13: 978-0865970205

European History

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Hume's History deserves to be ranked with such works as Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War and Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.... The theme of liberty, above all others, gives continuity to Hume's detailed examination of English constitutional development from the Anglo-Saxon period to the Revolution of 1688."

About the Author

David Hume

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 3332 pages
• Publisher: Liberty Fund (October 1, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0865970203
• ISBN-13: 978-0865970205
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #154,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars When Whigs and Tories really mattered, November 11, 2001

By 

John J. Ross (Chestnut Hill, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: History of England [6-Volume Set] (Paperback)

Hume's massive work of English history is available in this economical and well-bound paperback edition. While somewhat out-of-date by the standards of modern academic historians, and prolix at times, Hume's history remains entertaining for contemporary readers, by virtue of the classical elegance of his prose, the scepticism and even-handedness of his judgments, and his sharp thematic focus on the evolution and delineation of powers in the English constitution. Hume's history is clearly a product of the Enlightenment: the only thing he finds more contemptible than the arbitrary powers at times exercised by monarchy and aristocracy is political encroachment by religious zeal and fanaticism. His narrative is most compelling in Volumes 5 and 6, those documenting the convulsions of the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. These were in fact written first. Volumes 1 and 2 were written last, probably for the sake of completeness, and with a clear sense of pain by Hume, who feels that the primitive societies of ancient and medieval England are least instructive to the civilized reader.

Bertrand Russell, in his history of philosophy, jokingly accuses Hume of preferring Scots to Englishmen, and Tories to Whigs, with some injustice. The dismal, intolerant and conceited fanaticism of the lowland Scots Presbyterians is a particular target of Hume's invective and mockery, and the Scots Highlanders (with the Irish) are usually dismissed as barbarians. On the other hand, possibly the only two characters to appear in a heroic light in the entire six volumes are William Wallace ("Braveheart") and James Graham, marquise of Montrose, dashing royalist general of the English Civil War. While he certainly deplores the usurpations of Cromwell, whom he paints with bold, vivid and unflattering strokes, Hume is also clearly in favor of quite limited executive (ie, royal) power, and writes as a man of history, not of party.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars History for scholars of history and literature, September 8, 2001

By 

Rolf Aderhold (Hannover, Germany) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: History of England [6-Volume Set] (Paperback)

First let me note that this edition of Hume's "History" by the Liberty Fund offers excellent value for your money. The six volumes are well-edited and well-printed books for book lovers.
For more than a hundred years, Hume's text, first published in the 1750s, was a standard textbook on British history. His diction is elegant, superbly paced and offers delightful reading. However, Hume did not concentrate on exciting descriptions of battles and intrigues, as Macaulay did a century later. He wanted to show that English history had always striven to implement a constitutional monarchy, and so his narrative follows this lead, up to a highly partial depiction of the fates of Charles II and Oliver Cromwell. Hume's liberal ideology made him write a story that stresses the success of parliament. As a philosopher of the Enlightenment, he described the sorry state of the arts and science (elucidated in several ndependent chapters). Thus, his work will give you valuable, if biased insights into the development of the British nation up to the Glorious Revolution in the 1680s. If you read this work carefully, I'm sure you will enjoy it.