David L. Smith has been a Fellow of Selwyn College, Cambridge since 1988. He was a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago in 1991, the year in which he won the Royal Historical Society's Alexander Prize. His previous books include Constitutional Royalism and the Search for Settlement, c.1640-1649 (1994), and edited with R. Strier and D. Bevington, The Theatrical City: Culture, Theatre and Politics in London, 1576-1649 (1995)

This is a survey of a seminal and intensely controversial period in British history, from the union of the Crowns of England and Scotland in 1603 to the union of the Kingdoms in 1707. The book explores the intersecting histories of the Stuart monarchies and considers how events in each nation were shaped by being part of a multiple kingdom as well as by their own internal dynamics. Throughout, special attention is given to the personalities and political style of successive rulers. Their role in precipitating two revolutions is examined against the background of longer term constitutional, religious and social themes. In particular, the parallels between James I and Charles II, and between Charles I and James II, are clearly drawn out.