Civil War: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms 1638-1660 by Trevor Royle (Little, Brown £20).

IT is easy to regard the great cataclysm of the mid-17th Century as being a purely English revolution, fought out on the rolling fields of the North and Midlands by the sons of peasants and gentlemen.

True, the decisive clash at Naseby conformed to this stereotype. But equally destructive battles would also rage throughout Scotland and Ireland, most notably at the siege of Drogheda and Dunbar.

It is this sense of overview that permeates acclaimed author Trevor Royle's latest work.

From his perceptive analyses of the many characters who played a part, to his evocative descriptions of battles, here is the full, dramatic narrative of those traumatic years.

Much of the evidence is based on the personal accounts of the people who lived through the experience, from the writings of Oliver Cromwell to the diaries of ordinary men and women.

Civil War examines the impact of the struggle on non-combatants and the devastation caused by the fighting.

It also re-appraises the joyless image of the Puritans and takes a fresh look at their political ideals.

More than 350 years have passed since those times of strife came to their bloody conclusion before the city walls of Worcester.

Yet, the echoes continue to reverberate down the centuries.

For from concepts of justice to our system of parliamentary democracy, the richer legacy of the period remains with us still.

And there is none better qualified than Trevor Royle to be our guide through turbulent times when the fate of more than kings hung in the balance. John Phillpott