About this episode

The episode explores the historical context of James VI's reign in London and the events leading to the Civil War.

When James VI of Scotland arrived in London in 1603 to become the first ‘King of Great Britain’, expectations were high. They were soon disappointed, not least for the Catholics who tried to blow him and half of Westminster up in 1605. But the plot failed, and with James’s reign came a new, lavish court life, the emergence of the first newspapers amid the booming print industry around St Paul’s, and, with the guidance of Inigo Jones, the arrival of the renaissance in London’s architecture with the development of Covent Garden and the first of the city’s squares. To continue her story of London, Rosemary is joined again by Vanessa Harding to see why James’s Stuart settlement eventually failed under the personal rule of Charles I, leading to a civil war in which London became the financial and military headquarters for the victorious Parliamentarians and James’s grand new banqueting house at Whitehall was used as the backdrop for his son’s execution. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full, and to all our other Close Readings series, sign up: Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://lrb.me/applesignuplr⁠⁠ Other podcast…

People in this episode

Host: Rosemary

Guest: Vanessa Harding

Topics covered

• British history
• Civil War
• architecture
• court life
• print industry
• Stuart settlement

Keywords

• James VI
• Civil War
• London
• architecture
• court life
• Parliamentarians
• Covent Garden

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Parliamentarians

Places: London, Covent Garden, Whitehall

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