The press gang, and its forcible recruitment of sailors to man the Royal Navy in times of war, acquired notoriety for depriving men of their liberty and carrying them away to a harsh life at sea, sometimes for years at a time. Nicholas Rogers explains exactly how the press gang worked, whom it was aimed at and how successful it was in achieving its ends. He also shows the limits to its operations and the press gang's need for cooperation from local authorities, who were by no means prepared to support it.Written by an expert in the social history of eighteenth-century Britain, it is both well-researched and highly readable.

An engaging illustrated history of one of America's most beloved and pagan holidays draws on a wide variety of sources to trace the cultural origins and evolution of this celebration of the dead from ancient days to the present. (Holidays)

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Product Description: The period from 1688-1820 was marked throughout with riots and rebellions, seditions and strikes, as the lower classes rebelled against the state bias towards the interests of higher social groups. Drawing on recent work on demography, labor, and law, this readable history of the period focuses on the experience of the eighty percent of the population who made up England's "lower orders...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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