Bloodsuckers of the Commonwealth: Monopolies, Petitioning, and the Public Sphere in Early Modern England

This book examines anti-monopoly petitioning activity in England between 1590-1625. It reveals that the growth of monopolies and issuing of new charters was an integral issue triggering subjects to engage in politics. It adds a new dimension to scholarly understandings of popular political culture at the turn of the century.

Ellen Paterson is CMRS Career Development Fellow in Early Modern History at Keble College, University of Oxford