Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of 'Eighty is a historical novel by the author Charles Dickens. A historical novel is a novel in which the story is set among historical events, or more generally, in which the time of the action predates the lifetime of the author. ... Charles Dickens was a prolific writer who was almost always working on a new installment for a story and rarely missed a deadline. ...

Plot introduction

The plot is based on the "no-popery" or Gordon riots of 1780 seen through the eyes of the simple but good-hearted title character. The fanatical anti-Catholic Lord George Gordon is treated with some sympathy in the novel, which concludes with a panoramic description of the riots, which lasted several days. The Gordon Riots is a term used to refer to a number of events in a predominantly Protestant religious uprising in London aimed against the Roman Catholic Relief Act, 1778, relieving his Majestys subjects, of the Catholic Religion, from certain penalties and disabilities imposed upon them during the reign... 1780 was a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The neutrality of this article is disputed. ... Lord George Gordon (26 December 1751 - 12 November 1793), third and youngest son of Cosmo George, duke of Gordon, was an eccentric politician. ...

Barnaby Rudge (along with The Old Curiosity Shop) was one of two novels which Dickens published in his short-lived weekly serial Master Humphrey's Clock, which lasted from 1840 to 1841, when Barnaby Rudge was published. It was Dickens' first attempt at a historical novel, his only other being A Tale of Two Cities. The Old Curiosity Shop Portsmouth Street London The Old Curiosity Shop is a novel by the author Charles Dickens. ... Master Humphreys Clock was a weekly periodical edited and written entirely by Charles Dickens from April 4, 1840— December 4, 1841. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... take you to calendar). ... Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is a historical novel by Charles Dickens; it is moreover a moral novel strongly concerned with themes of guilt, shame and patriotism. ...

Plot summary

The first part of the story details the life of the residents of a small village in Epping Forest, just outside London, in the year 1775, the setting for the action being the Maypole Inn, the Warren (the Haredales' stately home) and the countryside around. The tale opens on the nineteenth of March with a sinister recounting of a violent murder that took place exactly twenty-two years before the story begins. During this first part, the book examines life in this village, including interpersonal relationships, in a traditionally Dickensian style. Some of the most important elements in this first section are: Epping Forest is an area of ancient woodland in south-east England, straddling the border between north-east London and the county of Essex. ... For other uses, see London (disambiguation). ... 1775 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

• The animosity between Mr Haredale and Sir John Chester
• Edward Chester's love for Emma Haredale
• Joe Willett's love for Dolly Varden; also Hugh's love for her
• The tense relationship between Joe and his father
• Barnaby's simpleness and need for his mother's protection

In chapter 35, with the arrival at the Maypole (on the nineteenth of March, five years after the story begins) of Lord Gordon and his followers, the stability of village life is interrupted, echoing the destruction that the riots in Gordon's name will cause in London itself, and the themes and characters that Dickens has built up become essential to the reader's understanding of the effects of the riots on society. Another tactic for subtly drawing attention to the way the story is unfolding is Grip the raven and his seemingly nonsensical comments, which often reveal greater truths to the reader than to the characters. For other uses, see London (disambiguation). ... Charles Dickens was a prolific writer who was almost always working on a new installment for a story and rarely missed a deadline. ...

Characters in "Barnaby Rudge"

• The Rudges – Barnaby, a simple man, his loving mother Mary and Grip the raven
• The Willetts – Old John, the keeper of the Maypole Inn, and his kindly son Joe
• The Vardens – Gabriel, the locksmith, his intemperate wife, and his beautiful daughter Dolly
• The Chesters – Sir John and his son Edward
• The Haredales – Mr Haredale and his niece Emma
• Hugh – the Maypole's sinister handyman
• Lord George Gordon
• Simon Tappertit – Gabriel Varden's apprentice, and Miggs, Mrs. Varden's lady's maid

Lord George Gordon (26 December 1751 - 12 November 1793), third and youngest son of Cosmo George, duke of Gordon, was an eccentric politician. ...

Allusions/references from other works

It is said that Edgar Allan Poe was inspired by Barnaby Rudge in writing The Raven. This daguerreotype of Poe was taken less than a year before his death at the age of 40. ... This article is about the poem by Edgar Allan Poe. ...

External links

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Barnaby Rudge

Online editions Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikisource – The Free Library – is a Wikimedia project to build a free, wiki library of primary source texts, along with translations of source-texts into any language and other supporting materials. ...

• Free eBook Barnaby Rudge at Project Gutenberg
• Barnaby Rudge - Searchable HTML version.
• Barnaby Rudge - Easy to read HTML version.