This War Without an Enemy: A History of the English Civil Wars

Richard Ollard's work is a great starting point for exploring the English Civil War. The text is accessible and engaging, even amusing in places, and the book is not overlong. Ollard manages, in a fairly short space, to capture many of the complexities of the war, including Charles I' charming, yet maddening personality. In addition to compact, well-written text, the book is beautiful. It contains many maps, paintings, pamphlets, and other artwork of the period, illustrating the people, battles, and issues of the war. Ollard's book does have a few faults. For one thing, I think he is a bit too enamored of Clarendon. Ollard obviously has great respect for this clever statesman and justly so. However, he seems to accept some of Clarendon's statements without much analysis. It is true that Clarendon's history of the war must constitute a major source for any serious historian of the conflict. Clarendon is a firsthand witness, after all. However, he is not remotely non-biased, and he did write his history long after the completion of the war. He had personal quarrels with some of the major characters, including Rupert, and no reason to represent them fairly. Clarendon's heavy political involvement both before and after the war also makes him suspect for ulterior motives in his text. In addition, Ollard admits in several places that Clarendon was a talented propaganda man - a 17th century spin doctor. To accept his statements without analysis seems unwise. In addition to his Clarendon-worship, Ollard provides no bibliography for his book. This is a serious offense in a academic work, even one designed for lay consumption. He does, at least, acknowledge the sources for his pictures. In spite of its faults, Ollard's book has much to recommend it. If you are interested in the English Civil War, this one is worth a read.