The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699)
Writing against oblivion was a matter of urgency for witnesses of the English Civil Wars who sought to vindicate their past actions and restore historical truth on the basis of their first-hand experience of the conflict. Despite the “Act of Oblivion” (1660) seditious memories did not disappear afte...
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Société d'Etudes Anglo-Américaines des XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles
2024-12-01
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| Series: | XVII-XVIII |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/1718/13503 |
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| author | Claire Gheeraert-Graffeuille |
| author_facet | Claire Gheeraert-Graffeuille |
| author_sort | Claire Gheeraert-Graffeuille |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Writing against oblivion was a matter of urgency for witnesses of the English Civil Wars who sought to vindicate their past actions and restore historical truth on the basis of their first-hand experience of the conflict. Despite the “Act of Oblivion” (1660) seditious memories did not disappear after the Restoration, and memoirs dealing with the “troubles” circulated clandestinely. This article looks at Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials, in which the General of the New Model Army justifies his military conduct and decision not to vote the execution of Charles I (1649). Fairfax’s testimony abounds in silences and historical inaccuracies; yet, and possibly for this reason, it provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of remembrance and oblivion. This paper examines the manuscripts and printed edition of the Short Memorials (1699) to illustrate how memorial strategies differed between these versions of the text, and interpret the significance of these variations. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c35df5fecb0847f68c7101c8475ba4a9 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0291-3798 2117-590X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Société d'Etudes Anglo-Américaines des XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles |
| record_format | Article |
| series | XVII-XVIII |
| spelling | doaj-art-c35df5fecb0847f68c7101c8475ba4a92025-01-10T14:09:00ZengSociété d'Etudes Anglo-Américaines des XVIIe et XVIIIe sièclesXVII-XVIII0291-37982117-590X2024-12-018110.4000/130q6The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699)Claire Gheeraert-GraffeuilleWriting against oblivion was a matter of urgency for witnesses of the English Civil Wars who sought to vindicate their past actions and restore historical truth on the basis of their first-hand experience of the conflict. Despite the “Act of Oblivion” (1660) seditious memories did not disappear after the Restoration, and memoirs dealing with the “troubles” circulated clandestinely. This article looks at Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials, in which the General of the New Model Army justifies his military conduct and decision not to vote the execution of Charles I (1649). Fairfax’s testimony abounds in silences and historical inaccuracies; yet, and possibly for this reason, it provides valuable insights into the mechanisms of remembrance and oblivion. This paper examines the manuscripts and printed edition of the Short Memorials (1699) to illustrate how memorial strategies differed between these versions of the text, and interpret the significance of these variations.https://journals.openedition.org/1718/13503English Civil WarThomas FairfaxOliver CromwellCharles IMemoirsHistoriography |
| spellingShingle | Claire Gheeraert-Graffeuille The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) XVII-XVIII English Civil War Thomas Fairfax Oliver Cromwell Charles I Memoirs Historiography |
| title | The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) |
| title_full | The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) |
| title_fullStr | The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) |
| title_full_unstemmed | The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) |
| title_short | The “grave of oblivion”: Remembering the English Civil War in Sir Thomas Fairfax’s Short Memorials (1699) |
| title_sort | grave of oblivion remembering the english civil war in sir thomas fairfax s short memorials 1699 |
| topic | English Civil War Thomas Fairfax Oliver Cromwell Charles I Memoirs Historiography |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/1718/13503 |
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