The Rise and Fall of Merry England: The Ritual Year 1400–1700

Ronald Hutton examines the religious and secular rituals that shaped the English year between 1400 and 1700. The book traces seasonal celebrations, communal festivities and local customs through periods of major religious and political change, including the English Reformation, the early Stuart campaign for a Reformation of Manners and the Puritan Revolution.

Drawing on evidence such as local financial records, Hutton considers how festivals were organised, challenged and adapted in parishes and communities. The study also discusses the cultural divisions exposed by the English Civil War, the impact of the English Revolution, the literary context of Ben Jonson and Robert Herrick, and the emergence of folklore as a field of study.