That the book was completed at all is a testament to Green’s passion and determination. That it became such a success brought him some comfort in his final years, even as his health deteriorated further. He died in 1883 at just 45.
Conclusion: a history for the people
In the end, A Short History of the English People is more than a survey of battles, laws, and rulers. It is a portrait of a nation finding its voice, told with sympathy for the struggles of ordinary townsfolk, farmers, artisans, and reformers who shaped English life just as much as monarchs and ministers did.
John Richard Green helped to redefine what history could be — a living, human story that belongs not merely to elites but to all people. For this reason, his book stands as one of the great achievements of Victorian historical writing, and continues to be a touchstone for anyone interested in how the English, over long centuries, came to see themselves as a people. shutdown123