* Written in an accessible style designed to appeal to general non-specialist readers as well as undergraduate and postgraduate audiences. * The first book-length study of a man who features in almost all civil war histories but who is poorly understood. This will attract and interest those who are interested in other aspects of civil war history and wish to integrate Poyer into their studies. * The volume adopts a chronological and biographical approach to navigate the story of the civil wars. This will help readers engage with and understand the complex and confusing terrain of civil war politics, allegiance and the events which led to the Second Civil War and, ultimately, the execution of King Charles I. * Utilises a wealth of new material from archives in Britain and North America which will be novel to all those engaging with this topic area. * Provides the first discussion of John Poyer's background and also his posthumous reputation, allowing readers better to contextualise and understand how this figure fits into the scholarship of the origins, course and legacy of the civil wars.

This is the first book-length treatment of the ‘turncoat’ John Poyer, the man who initiated the Second Civil War through his rebellion in south Wales in 1648. The volume charts Poyer’s rise from a humble glover in Pembroke to become parliament’s most significant supporter in Wales during the First Civil War (1642–6), and argues that he was a more complex and significant individual than most commentators have realised. Poyer’s involvement in the poisonous factional politics of the post-war period (1646–8) is examined, and newly discovered material demonstrates how his career offers fresh insights into the relationship between national and local politics in the 1640s, the use of print and publicity by provincial interest groups, and the importance of local factionalism in understanding the course of the civil war in south Wales. The volume also offers a substantial analysis of Poyer’s posthumous reputation after his execution by firing squad in April 1649.