Lucy Hughes-Hallett

The radicals of 17th-century England began to think the unthinkable

Jonathan Healey describes how Diggers, Levellers and other revolutionary sects started proposing universal male suffrage, legal aid and even a national health service

Oliver Cromwell directs the felling of the Royal Oak of Britain. From The Compleat History of Independency by Clement Walker, 1661. [Bridgeman Images]
  • Comments

  • The Blazing World: A New History of Revolutionary England

    Jonathan Healey

    Bloomsbury, pp. 488, £30

Already a subscriber? Log in

This article is for subscribers only

Get a free bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label when you subscribe to The Spectator for just £12 in our Black Friday sale

  • Free bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label whisky, worth £30
  • Unlimited access to our website and app
  • Enjoy Spectator newsletters and podcasts
  • Explore our online archive, going back to 1828

Read next

Trending

Limor Simhony Philpott

The ICC’s vendetta against Israel has gone too far

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants against Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the country’s former defence minister Yoav Gallant. An ICC warrant was also issued for Hamas leader Mohammed Deif, who was killed by Israel in July. The judges decided that there are ‘reasonable grounds’ that the trio are responsible for

Also in Book Reviews

Also by Lucy Hughes-Hallett

Latest

Comments

Black Friday sale: Get 10 weeks for just $1

Unlimited access to the The Spectator, online and via the app

Already a subscriber? Log in