Modern Britain, 1750 to the Present (Cambridge History of Britain)

Synopsis

This Wide-ranging Introduction To The History Of Modern Britain Extends From The Eighteenth Century To The Present Day. James Vernon's Distinctive History Is Woven Around An Account Of The Rise, Fall And Reinvention Of Liberal Ideas About How Markets, Governments And Empires Should Work. It Is A History That Takes Seriously The Different Experiences Within The British Isles And The British Empire, And Offers A Global History Of Britain. Instead Of Tracing How Britons Made The Modern World, Vernon Shows How The World Shaped The Course Of Britain's Modern History. Richly Illustrated With Figures And Maps, The Book Features Textboxes (on Particular People, Places And Sources), Further Reading Guides, Highlighted Key Terms And A Glossary. A Supplementary Online Package Includes Additional Primary Sources, Discussion Questions, And Further Reading Suggestions, Including Useful Links. This Textbook Is An Essential Resource For Introductory Courses On The History Of Modern Britain-- War And The Reach Of The State. After The Revolution Of 1688/9 The First Job Of The Fledgling State Was To Survive. The Post- Revolutionary Settlement Sought To Address The Outstanding Constitutional Causes Of The Conflict With The Bill Of Rights (1689) And The Acts Of Toleration (1689) And Settlement (1701). The Bill Of Rights Helped Establish A New Type Of Constitutional Monarchy Unable To Raise Armies Or Taxes And Unable To Interfere In The Conduct Of Law Or Parliamentary Procedures And Elections. Together With The Act Of Settlement In 1701 It Also Enshrined The Protestant Nature Of The Monarchy, Barring Catholics To That Office And Ensuring That The Throne Would Pass To Mary's Heirs And Then Only To James' Heirs Who Had Married In To The Protestant German House Of Hanover. Parliament, Not The Hereditary Principle Of The Monarchy, Determined The Issue Of Succession--a Truly Revolutionary Principle In A Dynastic Europe Ruled By Monarchs Who Claimed (if Rarely Practiced) Absolute Power. John Locke's Two Treatises On Government (1689) Theorized That This New Contract Between Parliament And The Monarchy Endowed Englishmen With Certain Minimal Rights And Rested The Legitimacy Of Government On Their Shoulders. The Leading Philosopher And Political Theorist Of The Age, Locke Argued That The Legitimacy Of Government Rested In Its Ability To Represent The People With Whom Sovereignty Lay. Finally, The Act Of Toleration (1689) Allowed Freedom Of Worship To Both Dissenting And Non-conformist Protestants (those Who Chose Not To Join The Congregation Of The State's Church Of England), But Specifically Excluded Catholics. All These Groups Remained Barred From Holding Public Office Or Being Educated At The Universities Of Oxford And Cambridge-- Part I. 1750-1819 : The Ends Of The Ancien Regime -- The Imperial State -- An Enlightened Civil Society? -- An Imperial Economy And The Great Transformation -- Part Ii. 1819-1885 : Becoming Liberal And Global -- A Liberal Revolution In Government -- An Empire Of Free Trade? -- Practising Democracy -- Part Iii. 1885-1931 : The Crises Of Liberalism -- The British Imperium -- The Social Problem -- The Rise Of The Mass -- Part Iv. 1931-1976 : Society Triumphant -- Late Imperialism And Social Democracy -- Social Democracy And The Cold War -- The Ends Of Social Democracy -- Part V. 1976- : A New Liberalism? -- The Neoliberal Revolution And The Making Of Homo Economicus -- Glossary. James Vernon. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.