Civil War London -Interview with Robin Rowles
Interview with tour-guide and author Robin Rowles
Image used courtesy of 'Pen & Sword' Books
Delighted to be able to interview Robin Rowles, author of 'The Civil War in London : Voices from the City ' ( 'Pen & Sword' ,2018) via email.
I have asked Robin to introduce to himself.
I am a City of London Tour Guide, working as a self employed member of 'Footprints of London Ltd'. In 2012 I developed a walk 'Civil War connections around St Paul's and Cheapside. The title is a nod to Dr Johnson's Tour Through The Whole Island of Great Britain. News of my walk obviously spread, very flattering, because in September 2016 I received a tweet from 'Pen and Sword'. Would I be interested in writing a book about Sherlock Holmes and London? I replied no! Not because I doubted my ability to write one, but I knew the market was nearly saturated with the topic. However, I added that I could write about the civil war in London.
1.How Did You Come to write 'The Civil War in London? Did you think that the subject hadn't been specifically covered or needed a different approach?
Regarding the historiography. Stephen Porter edited London and the Civil War (Basingstoke 1996), a series of essays based upon a series of lectures at the Museum of London to commemorate the 350th anniversary of the Civil W starting in 1642. I am undoubtedly indebted to this source, not only for its excellent content. I adopted the book's structure of eight chapters, each dedicated to a single theme for my book. Peter Porter also later co-wrote with Simon Marsh The Battle for London (Stroud 2010) which focused on the battles of Brentford and Turnham Green in Autumn 1642. Two invaluable resources. Between these two publications, Professor Diane Purkiss wrote The English Civil War A People's History (London, 2007) . Reading this helped me to find the tone of my book which I intended to be entertaining informative and accessible, a mixture of popular and academic. 'Pen and Sword's publication house style is not to include a bibliography as this may put off the casual reader but does insist, correctly, that direct and indirect quotations are fully cited. There have been several excellent books written on the Civil War, but I wanted to tell the story my way. Initially the book's working title was A Civil War Walk Around London but this was changed to avoid the impression that it was a guidebook or the 'book of the walk'.
2.London remained in Parliamentarian hands during the Civil War. Is it possible to guess what percentage of the population were royalists-and did this fluctuate?
Interesting question. I subscribe to the school of thought that London had three groupings, parliamentarians, royalists and 'inbetweeners' .These last may be described as passive parliamentarians, neutrals, or even trimmers. I think that in the centre of the city, the ratio of parliamentarians, (including the passives,) to royalists was 2:1, but this ratio was reversed at the outskirts. We know that London had two openly royalist Lord Mayors, but mapping the shifting allegiance of the Corporation during the war years would be a mammoth task, let alone the citizens and the other occupants of the city ! Their numbers would fluctuate. After Turnham Green, the city was secured and the London regiments went out on the road, thus reducing the number of parliamentarians. Their numbers would be replaced by royalist prisoners of war, and those from either side or none, seeking sanctuary from the conflict. Also the merchants that imported and exported goods in and out of London often carried two sets of passports, so they could pass through the lines without having their goods confiscated.
3. London seems to have had quite a radical tradition , supporting the rebel barons against King John in 1216. The support for Simon de Montfort in 1264-1265, joining in the uprising of 1381. Do you see London's role in the Civil War conforming to a pattern?
London does have a sort of radical history and it is possible to sketch a pattern. London has been proud of its autonomy from the crown just as parliament is. On the other hand, Londoners declared for Queen Mary during Wyatt's Rebellion in 1554 and for Elizabeth against the Earl of Essex in 1600. Then again there are a lot of statues of people, dedications to animals, organisations and even buildings, but fewer that fifty statues of royalty in the city.
4. Do you think that London, considering its size of population in the 17th century held too much power as it were? I am thinking of Paris- as a comparison -during the French Revolution, and how political faction fighting there could determine the fate of the whole country.
The London factor was vital to the Parliamentarian success. It's almost certain that if London has sided with the king, not only would the royalists would have won, there may not have been a civil war. Charles marched into parliament in 1642 with a company of pikemen-he could have mobilised the army and arrested the whole of parliament.
5. I was particularly interested to read about the role of London in financing the Parliamentarian side during the Civil War. Do you think that historians sometimes miss the fact that the defeat of Charles I was quite a triumph of administration and organisation, as well as a military achievement?
Whilst wars are won by winning a series of battles, without logistics there are no battles, and without logistics there are no battles. It's also an example of small actions having large results. The routine countersigning an order requisitioning six barrels of gunpowder (say) might be the hinge factor between holding or losing a key position.
6. How long have you been doing the Civil War tours in London? What places do you visit on them?
I launched this walk in February 2012, and it runs approximately every six weeks or so. The walk stops include City Livery companies such as the Goldsmiths, Haberdashers, Mercers and the Cutlers. The Guildhall, the government of the City, is a major part of the walk. Then there is St Paul's Cathedral and the former church of Christchurch Greyfriars. Both played important roles in the conflict. Places associated with stakeholders such as Cromwell and Milton are also visited. All the places are seen from the outside.
7. Which histories of the British Civil Wars do you recommend to a reader who wants to learn more?
I would recommend of the three books described above plus David Flintham's Civil War London A Military History of London Under Charles I And Oliver Cromwell. ( Amherst 2017) for a purely military history. John Adair's By the Sword Divided ; Eyewitness accounts of the English Civil Wars ( Stroud 2001) retells the war through analyses of primary sources. But the truly fascinated reader will enjoy Samuel Rawson Gardiner's History of the Great Civil Wars ( 4 vols, London 2002). Plus many others too numerous to mention.
8. Any plans for future books or other research?
I would like to write a follow up book, exploring areas of London that space precluded discussing in the book. This raises interesting questions e.g. should a history of London be confined to its boundaries as London existed then? Or is it helpful to the readers, say, in the London Borough of Redbridge to know what happened there during the civil war? Much of the present day borough was countryside in Essex but surely something of interest must have happened. And I would like to explore women's involvement in the civil war. Due to the nature of my sources my book tends to focus on the male narrative and the acts of men. I would like the chance to correct this imbalance. Being male, I can't obviously write a feminist history of the civil war, but I think that I can write a women's history. During the history of the English Family seminar classes at Birckbeck University of London, I delivered a presentation of a Tudor birthing ritual, to the amusement of my female class mates.
9. Do you have a favourite poem that relates to the British Civil Wars?
No particular favourite, but Richard Lovelace's To Althea from Prison probably sums up the thoughts and emotions of prisoners of war separated from their loved ones. 'Stone walls doe not a prison make nor iron bars a cage'. The full poem may be read in the Penguin Book of Renaissance Verse 1509-1659 ( ed H R Woodhuysen , London 2005) Throughout this poem Lovelace's emphasises the physical and tangible, but the neatly flips this round. Love conquers all, we are not confined by physical objects . The last word in every verse is liberty.
Finally how can readers of this blog find you on line?
My walks appear on the footprints website www.footprintsoflondon.com. I post regularly on Facebook and have started a new series of short extracts from the Calendar of State Papers on the Facebook page The Stuart Era 1542- 1714 My Twitter handle is @SherlockWalks and readers are welcome to tweet me with questions.
Thank you to Robin for agreeing to be interviewed. Robin also leads Doctor Who , Sherlock Holmes and H G Wells related London Walks.
Review of 'The Civil War in London: Voices from the City ' -Robin Rowles
By Michael Bully
Highly recommended. The book starts by offering an overview of early Stuart rule and the outbreak of rebellion. Has some thought provoking material for someone who has already studied the period, but a reasonable introduction for those who haven't. Only occasionally does the writer assume that the reader is already familiar with the subject.
Very useful work showing the role of city finance in supporting Parliament and how the various trades and other enterprises were crucial in keeping opposition going against the monarchy. However, makes the point that there was always at least some pro-Royalist support, along with some citizens who changed sides when it suited them. The use of London apprentices , particularly in relieving the siege of Gloucester in 1643, is also looked at.
The writer's knowledge of the City of London- he is a respected tour guide- dates back further than the early Stuart era and extends well past the Great Fire of 1666.
Military history is not a major theme as such. Radical groups such as The Levellers and the Fifth Monarchy Men are featured but again not in a great detail in the book. . And this is probably one of the book's strengths- the writer is offering their own unique angle on a topic that they know well whilst the extensive endnotes show how they have also built on existing scholarship. A real achievement.
Comments
Post a Comment