History of Henry Esmond. Volume 1. Thackeraey U.

In the historical novel History of Henry Esmond, the classic of English literature William Thakekerei (1811-1863) set himself the task of showing that the great wars and the change of royal dynasties on the throne have their wrong side, which looks not too attractive from the point of view of an ordinary person. It is such a person who is the protagonist of the story - Henry Esmond, an unclaimed offspring of a noble surname. His life fell on the era of the restless reign of Anna Stewart - the times when the war was fought for the Spanish inheritance, and Catholics and Protestants fought desperately for the right to put their candidate for English throne, which sooner or later would become vacant.