This is a comprehensive account of the great revolutions which swept over Europe and America during the past three centuries, beginning with the peasant wars which preceded the modern era. The book then gives accounts of the English Civil War of the mid-17th century, the American Revolution of the 1770s-1780s, and the French Revolution of the closing decade of the 18th century. Throughout the text, the emphasis is on the popular movements which propelled the great revolutions to radical peaks, the little-known leaders who spoke for the people, and the liberating social reforms which were produced by the revolutions. The author combines the social background and key events of the great revolutions, offering more than an account of the past; the democratic forms of social organization described in the book make it of relevance to the problems of public empowerment and civil liberties today.