This meticulously-researched monograph is divided into two parts the first of which is biographical in organisation while the second is much more analytical. Of particular interest in the first part is the way in which Ferdinando, Lord Fairfax, and his son, Sir Thomas, came to assume the leadership of the inhabitants of the West Riding's clothing districts in the earlier stages of the conflict. Andrew Hopper is also right to challenge the view that, when it came to the formation of the New Model Army and the eventual defeat of the king, Sir Thomas was over-promoted and politically irrelevant. In fact during 1645 Fairfax grew in confidence, becoming a significant political figure, especially in relation to military affairs. Again Hopper is right to argue that victory in 1646, and the lead-up to the second civil war, saw Fairfax emerge as a stronger advocate of the army's rights and interests than he has been given credit for. When it came to the purge and trial Fairfax, like Cromwell, trusted in divine providence to show the way and when the axe fell Fairfax was attending a prayer meeting at Whitehall. It is not true that Fairfax withdrew from politics immediately after the regicide. His later role in the Restoration has been described as ‘critical’ and he subsequently secured a royal pardon. In the second part of the book Hopper returns in greater depth to the links between the Fairfaxes, the West Riding clothing districts of Yorkshire and a godly religious culture. Furthermore, the roles of religion and honour are identified as key elements shaping Fairfax's political culture. His Calvinism was broad-based showing a regard for tender consciences. Closely related to the Fairfax family's godly religion was their concept of honour which was rooted in modesty, public duty, civic virtue and restraint. Image and reputation are two other important themes explored in this context. As one of the elect, Fairfax was convinced that he had been chosen by God as an instrument of war and the London presses turned father and son into godly heroes. Defeat therefore came as a big blow until compensated for by further successes. Fairfax acquired a reputation as a commander who would fight on until the very last, ignoring his periodic bouts of illness and personally leading his men into battle. Fairfax's formidable wife, Anne, and the poet, Andrew Marvell, provide gender and literature as themes for the penultimate chapter. Anne was to quarrel with her husband over both religion and, most dramatically, the king's trial. The final chapter brings together for comparative purposes Fairfax and Cromwell. Until the king's execution the two men exhibited similar beliefs and abilities but Hopper argues that the execution fundamentally transformed their relationship leaving Fairfax with a keen sense of betrayal. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in mid seventeenth-century England. The author also provides a most helpful bibliography and index.