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Search - British History, Chronologically Arranged; Comprehending A Classified Analysis Of Events And Occurrences In Church And State

British History Chronologically Arranged Comprehending A Classified Analysis Of Events And Occurrences In Church And State
Author: John Wade

BRITISH HISTORY, CHRONOLOGICALLY ARRANGED COMPREHENDING A CLASSIFIED ANALYSIS OP EVENTS AND OCCURRENCES IN AND OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL, POLITICAL, COMMERCIAL, INTELLECTUAL, AND SOCIAL PROGRESS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, FROM THE FIRST INVASION BY THE ROMANS TO THE ACCESSION OF QUEEN VICTORIA. BY JOHN WADE. PREFACE. THE purport of history varies with t... more »he progress of civilisation. Tn an early age, the spirit ofa community is embodied in the chief ruler, in whom all authority is mostly vested, and a narrative of public transactions assimilates in unity and simplicity with the paternal form of its civil government. But as society advances and becomes less homogeneous as subdivisions are introduced andnew interests created, the province of history becomes enlarged and more complicated. It ceases to be individual and becomes national. It is no longer occupied with the passions and caprices of one man, but the reason and movements of multitudes. Hitherto, the prevailing character of histories has been biographical. They are the lives of princes, ratherthan the records of nations. It is Julius Ceesar or Constantine, not the Roman of the annalist. people or the Greek empire, that fills the page The common histories of England offer few exceptions to the an- cient models, and the Edwards, Henries, and Richards crowd the foreground, to the almost entire exclusion of the other and often more important characters, events, and occurrences,, that really make up the body, form, and pressure of the time. Next to the sovereign, themost conspicuous figure on the canvass is usually the historian himself, whose opinions and peculiarities are frequently more forcibly displayed than the age he has undertaken to delineate. Aspiring to a higher office than that of simple chro- niclerof facts, which is his chief vocation, he seeks to embellish, or rather to distort the truth, by beauties . of style, by the charms of narrative, by moving and adventurous incidents, by picturesque and contrasted portraits of eminent persons, and by ingenious theories, conjectures, and unravelments of historical ob- scurities. The legitimate uses of history are thus sacrificed to the ingenuity or vanity of the author, and to the graces and excitements of literature its authority depreciated, and an agreeable romance, rather than faithful record, elaborated. Asecond evil, from the historian putting himselfforward in place ofhis subject, is in the spirit of partizanship by which his narrative thereby becomes imbued. This has been the great bane ofhistory. Every epoch, every political, social, and religious transition, and every prominent, personage has advocates and impugners, each of whom, by dexterous representation, suppression, or exaggeration seeks to maintain a peculiar thesis, according to his connexions, personal temperament, education, early impressions and associations. For those whose is reading not limited to one authority, and who have leisure and opportunities for investigating conflict- ing depositions, this may afford superior aids towards the entire elucidation and mastery of the truth. It has the advantage of a well-contested issue in a court of law, in which every particle of evidence is adduced and scrutinised on both sides, and the real merits of the cause either incontestably established or proved to be utterly unattainable...

ISBN-13: 9781406778984
ISBN-10: 1406778982
Publication Date: 10/9/2007
Pages: 576
Rating:

0 stars, based on 0 rating

Publisher: Fitts Press
Book Type: Paperback
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

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Search - British History, Chronologically Arranged; Comprehending A Classified Analysis Of Events And Occurrences In Church And State

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