Sir Walter Ralegh created a powerful public identity by means of the prose texts he wrote from prison. This new study not only offers a much-needed analysis of these neglected political writings, but also demonstrates the ways in which his readers modified Ralegh's public identity in a series of fascinating posthumous reinterpretations. By focusing on both Ralegh and his interpreters, this book contributes to the growing body of work on the politics and practice of writing and reading in early-modern England.

ANNA R. BEER teaches at the Universities of Oxford and Reading, specialising in courses for mature students. She is the author of several articles on early modern writing.

Acknowledgements - Sir Walter Ralegh and the Seventeenth Century - The History of the World - A Dialogue Between a Counsellor of State and a Justice of Peace - The Speech from the Scaffold - Resurrecting Ralegh: the 1620s and 1630s - Reforming Ralegh: the 1640s and 1650s - Postscript - Appendix I - Appendix II