David Horspool

David Horspool is a British historian, author and editor whose work ranges across English history from the Anglo-Saxon period to the twentieth century. He is History Editor of the Times Literary Supplement and has written extensively for a general readership, combining narrative history with a particular interest in political reputation, rebellion and the ways historical figures are remembered. His work frequently examines the relationship between events and their later interpretation, questioning familiar national myths and tracing how historical reputations develop over centuries.

His books include Why Alfred Burned the Cakes: A King and His Eleven-Hundred-Year Afterlife, which explores both Alfred the Great and the creation of his later legend; The English Rebel, a broad history of resistance and political rebellion in England; and Richard III: A Ruler and His Reputation, which reassesses Richard III alongside the controversies surrounding his reign and posthumous image. Horspool has also written Oliver Cromwell: England's Protector for the Penguin Monarchs series, examining Oliver Cromwell's rise through the English Civil Wars and his rule as Lord Protector. Across these works, Horspool is particularly concerned with separating historical evidence from legend and showing how figures such as Alfred, Richard III and Cromwell have been repeatedly reinterpreted to serve the concerns of later generations.