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Characters of the Reformation: Historical Portraits of the 23 Men and Women and Their Place in the G

hilaire belloc

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This may well be Belloc's most interesting work. It includes Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth I, St. Thomas More, Cranmer, Calvin, Mary Tudor ("Bloody Mary"), Mary Stuart ("Queen of Scots"), Cardinal Richelieu and many others--23 in all--analyzing their strengths, weaknesses, motives and mistakes and showing how this or that seemingly insignificant factor actually changed the course of history. An amazing book!

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1,1936

This edition

Format
208 pages, Paperback
Published
October 3, 1992 by TAN Books
ISBN
9780895554666
ASIN
0895554666
Language
English

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About the author

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hilaire belloc

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Hilaire Belloc was a French-British writer, historian, poet, and orator, known for his sharp wit, extensive literary output, and strong political and religious convictions. Born in France to a French father and an English mother, he was educated at Oxford, where he distinguished himself as a debater and scholar. Throughout his career, he wrote prolifically across a wide range of genres, producing histories, essays, travelogues, poetry, and satirical works.
Among his best-known writings are Cautionary Tales for Children, a collection of humorous yet dark moral verses, and his historical works, which often reflected his staunch Catholicism and critique of Protestant interpretations of history. He was a leading advocate of distributism, an economic theory promoting small-scale property ownership as a middle ground between capitalism and socialism, which he championed alongside his close friend G.K. Chesterton.
In politics, Belloc served as a Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party but grew disillusioned with the political establishment. His polemical style and strong opinions made him a controversial figure, particularly in his critiques of modernism, secularism, and financial capitalism, which he viewed as threats to traditional Christian society.
Belloc's literary legacy is vast, and his influence extends into both historical and literary circles. His writing, characterized by erudition, humor, and a forceful rhetorical style, continues to be studied and appreciated for its intellectual vigor and unique perspective on history, society, and human nature.

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Community Reviews

Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 41 votes)
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41 reviews All reviews
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Shiro_Chan
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Although this book may include information known to many, I am just getting into really studying all this history (or at least trying to remember what I once knew...). I thought it was very readable, I love that a chapter involves a single person so that I can refer back to an individual easily, and overall it is just a springboard to a dizzying array of other related topics....
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RGaspar
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Short pithy biographies of key political players during the Protestant Reformation. The book is written from the Roman Catholic perspective which gives an interesting viewpoint of the politician's lives.
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red_888
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Excellent book. It reads quickly like Belloc's Great Heresies. It focuses primarily on the evolution of the English Reformation from Henry VII to Oliver Cromwell and the Puritans.

If you enjoy Belloc, then you'll surely enjoy this book. It is more readable than his How the Reformation Happened.
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Chieken
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Short bios of important figures. Well written. I learned a lot about something an area where I'm totally ignorant.
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Shonenlegend
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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I really enjoyed this book.

It's very informative and well written. The writing style is clear and concise.

I learned a lot about the 'characters' and the situations surrounding the Reformation. I had known about some of the characters already, but most of them I'd never heard of before.

Reading "Characters of the Reformation" gave me a lot of good information about the unknown characters, and also provided insight into the characters I already knew about.

The circumstances surrounding the Reformation, or really the Revolution, and the consequences of it were even more varied and widespread then I had originally thought. It goes far beyond just King Henry.

You hear quite a bit about the Reformation on the continent, and Luther, Calvin and Zwingli, but it's very interesting to see how large an effect the English side had on it. Henry's rebellion had a ripple affect that stretched across years and countries that the monarch didn't anticipate.

The chapters were fascinating, and I gained a lot of knowledge from it. I just wish they were a bit longer, but aside from that it was very good.

I would certainly recommend it to anyone who wants to learn about history, or Christianity, or especially the history of Christianity.
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Dr_Nefaryous
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Clear, cogent, concise, Catholic perspective on crucial characters of the Protestant Reformation era.
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Stranglehold77
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 17,2025
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Intense and somewhat dry. Contains short bios of many of the prominent figures during the reformation. I think it would have perhaps helped if I read Belloc's other book, "How the Reformation Happened" before reading this one as it really jumped around in time.
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