CHAPTER XL

THE LAST YEARS OF CHARLES II. 1681-1685

1. Tory Reaction. 1681 622

2. 'Absolom and Achitophel.' 1681 623

3. The Scottish Test Act and the Duke of York's Return. 1681-1682 623

4. The City Elections. 1682 623

5. Flight and Death of Shaftesbury. 1682-1683 624

6. The Attack on the City. 1682-1683 624

7. The Remodelling of the Corporations. 1683-1684 625

8. The Rye House Plot. 1683 625

9. The Whig Combination. 1683 625

10. Trial and Execution of Lord Russell. 1683 625

11. Execution of Algernon Sidney. 1683 626

12. Parties at Court. 1684 626

13. Death of Charles II. 1685 627

14. Constitutional Progress. 1660-1685 627

15. Prosperity of the Country. 628

16. The Coffee Houses. 630

17. The Condition of London. 631

18. Painting. 631

19. Architecture. 631

20. Science. 632

21. Difficulties of Communication. 632

22. The Country Gentry and the Country Clergy. 633

23. Alliance between the Gentry and the Church. 633