History of Henry Esmond, Esq

Henry Esmond is a historical novel set in England in the age of Queen Anne, presented as the memoir of its hero, written in the old-fashioned style of the period. Henry grows up in a great house as a dependent of the Esmond family, uncertain of his own birth, and becomes bound by loyalty and love to the family's women. His life is entangled with war, the political struggle between the Stuarts and the Hanoverians, and a question of honour. Thackeray recreates the language and manners of the early eighteenth century with remarkable care.