In England on Edge, David Cressy reminds us that between the time the Long Parliament convened in 1640 and civil war broke out in 1642 print culture in England underwent radical changes that transformed its political and social circumstances. One of the English Revolution's “most revolutionary features,” according to Cressy, was “the explosion of print” in the opening years of the Long Parliament.

For most historians, the sharp rise in printed titles resulted from the end of Caroline censorship. According to Fredrick Siebert, “the printers of the realm found themselves free for the first time to print what they pleased” when the “controls of King, council, Star Chamber, and High Commission” weakened or disappeared. Bibliographical historians, including D. F. McKenzie and Sheila Lambert, however, have challenged the claims made for the impact of the “lapse of licensing.” When the historical understanding of Caroline press censorship is itself as vexed as this study has found it to be, that historiographical interpretations differ on censorship in the closing years of Charles's reign should be expected.