Earthly Necessities: Economic Lives in Early Modern Britain

Choice

Wrightson has written a splendid book that will define early modern British social history for the next generation. . . . In beautifully crafted prose . . . he begins with a fine historiographical essay,manages to include Scotland and Wales,and closes with a useful bibliography. . . . Must reading for anyone with a serious interest in European social and economic history.

James Sharpe

Well informed, well nuanced, [and] readable... . A very effective account of a long and complex transition in British economic life, a transition characterized by the advance of commercialization.
— History Today

James Sharpe

Well informed,well nuanced,[and] readable. . . . A very effective account of a long and complex transition in British economic life,a transition characterized by the advance of commercialization.
—History Today

John Morrill

This is a wonderful book; profoundly learned,brilliantly conceptualized,confidently and clearly and vividly written. It is truly a distinguished piece of work.

Martin Daunton

Magisterial . . . the best introduction to current interpretations of early modern Britain.
—Times Higher Education Supplement

Martin Daunton

Magisterial ... the best introduction to current interpretations of early modern Britain.
— Times Higher Education Supplement

Nigel Goose

A remarkable book, particularly in the manner in which it weaves together aspects of economic, social, political, and intellectual and cultural history... . It is elegantly written, measured and immensely stimulating.
— Reviews of History

Nigel Goose

A remarkable book,particularly in the manner in which it weaves together aspects of economic,social,political,and intellectual and cultural history. . . . It is elegantly written,measured and immensely stimulating.
—Reviews of History

Paul Slack

I know of no other work which shows so vividly what the long transition to a market society meant for those involved, and how ... it came about.
— Times Literary Supplement

Paul Slack

I know of no other work which shows so vividly what the long transition to a market society meant for those involved,and how . . . it came about.
—Times Literary Supplement

Steve Hindle

This . . . is a splendid book, beautifully organized, mellifluously written, and powerfully evocative of the birthpangs of market culture. It convincingly shows why economic history matters; why the time is right for a new synthesis; and why there has been such long-standing concern with the early modern period as a time of change.

Steve Hindle

This ... is a splendid book, beautifully organized, mellifluously written, and powerfully evocative of the birthpangs of market culture. It convincingly shows why economic history matters; why the time is right for a new synthesis; and why there has been such long-standing concern with the early modern period as a time of change.
— Rural History

Library Journal

With this synthesis by Yale social historian Wrightson, formerly of Cambridge, the publisher launches a new series edited by David Cannadine. This volume covers Britain's socioeconomic transformations between 1470 and 1750, a turbulent period that transfigured England through complex changes dubbed the "Industrial Revolution." Wrightson seeks to put this metamorphosis in social context, commencing with details of the lives of laborers, yeomen, gentle folk, craftsmen, and nobles in early Tudor times. In the second part, he discusses interlinked commercial, political, social, and other transitions of Elizabethan, Stuart, and early Hanoverian times. An analysis of late 17th- and mid-18th-century society and economy caps the work. Wrightson's innovativeness lies in interweaving social and economic literatures into a coherent whole and in covering Wales and Scotland. His well-written, scholarly prose is accessible. Detailed recommended readings and the identification of many scholarly sources in text replace notes. Highly recommended for academic and larger public libraries.--Nigel Tappin, Huntsville, Ont. Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.