Prophecy, Politics and the People in Early Modern England

Tim Thornton's book addresses the uses of ancient (non-biblical) prophecy in England, focusing especially upon the prognostications of Mother Shipton, Merlin and Nixon the Cheshire Prophet. As with recent treatments of the tales of Robin Hood, Thornton's purpose here is not to uncover whether these figures were real or fictional (though he sides clearly with the latter) but to investigate the sources for these stories and track the manner in which these narratives changed over time. Thornton uses this exploration of prophetic histories to challenge recent writing which has emphasised the cultural dominance of a national print culture, stressing instead the vitality of regional oral and manuscript traditions. Although the title defines it as a study of prophecy in early modern England, Thornton's discussion moves from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries. Thornton uses this broad chronological sweep to argue for the survival of prophecy as a political language at least until the late eighteenth century and to contend that it remained a vital part of popular culture, especially locally, well into the modern era

Art · Dominance (genetics · Fifteenth · Literature · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Theology · Vitality · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Classics · History · Law · Philosophy · Reformation and Early Modern Christianity · Religious Education and Schools