A Confusion of Tongues

This is a significant contribution to scholarship concerning the bitter arguments over the Caroline church that preceded the Civil War. Prior brings to light so much interesting material and makes so many subtle points about the ecclesiological debates preceding the Civil War that it is impossible to address them all fairly here. Anyone interested in the subject needs to read this book. William B. Robison, Journal of Church and State Prior provides a closely argued and densely documented history of ecclesiological politics in the decades preceding England's wars of religion. David Cressy, Ecclesiastical History. Vol. 64.2 Highly recommended. CHOICE concise and elegant. Dr Mark Williams, Reviews in History This is a challenging book, which eschews firm or clear conclusions but which invites the reader to experience the complexity of early Stuart debates. Readers will need to decide for themselves the significance of these debates, and may want to explore further their relationship to the broader history of the period. But Prior has drawn our attention to the confusion of the period in interesting ways, which will enrich future scholarship. H-Net Reviews The subject matter is challenging but the topic is of central importance and Prior's work will be essential reading for anyone interested in the early Stuart period. Tim Harris, Canadian Journal of History This is a significant contribution to scholarship concerning the bitter arguments over the Caroline church that preceded the Civil War ... Prior brings to light so much interesting material and makes so many subtle points about the ecclesiological debates preceding the Civil War ... Anyone interested in the subject needs to read this book. William B. Robison, Journal of Church and State Aimed at advanced undergraduates and beyond, this interesting and scholarly book discusses debates concerning religion, the law, and church-state relations in Britain between the accession of Charles I and the outbreak of Civil War ... Individual chapters discuss important controversies concerning the church and religion Johann P. Sommerville, Renaissance Quarterly Prior already has established his credentials as a historian of early Stuart English church history ... the considerable skill Prior deploys in guiding the reader through complex, highly nuanced debates and in at least posing a challenge for the ways in which historians have framed discussions about the nature of religious controversy within the Caroline Church of England. Keith M. Brown, American Historical Review This thoughtful and meticulously researched book presents a thoughtful and penetrating analysis of the debates over ecclesiology in Caroline England. Stefania Tutino, Recusant History