Political thought in early fourteenth-century England

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E.A. Smith

This book is the only up-to-date survey of the history of the House of Lords, and its impact on British politics and society, in the period from Waterloo to the First World War. It shows how the Lords adapted to, and survived, the 'age of reform'; and traces their changing relationship with the House of Commons and the British people at large. It fills an important gap, for the peerage were, and contrived to remain, major actors in the politics of the age. This survey thus illuminates not only the parliamentary and constitutional history of the time, but also, much more widely, the changing character of nineteenth-century Britain itself. E.A. Smith begins his account with the House of Lords before the 'Great Reform Act' of 1832. Tracing the changing fortunes of the Lords through and after the passage of the Act, he explains how an institution founded on aristocratic privilege and landed wealth, and seeming to embody all that was anachronistic and reactionary, managed to survive into the new era of mass Parliamentary democracy and retain for itself a very substantial influence on, and voice in, the nation's political and social life. How was it done? This remarkable record of adaptation and survival is shown to have its origins in the period immediately after 1832 when, largely through the influence of the Duke of Wellington, the Lords were induced to accept the new conditions. Radical agitation for the abolition of the House declined accordingly. Moreover, as Dr Smith makes clear, Victorian politics and society remained aristocratic in character despite the extension of the franchise, and even the Liberal and Labour governments of the twentieth century have been reluctant to undertake fundamental reform. Even the Parliament Act of 1911, with the passage and implications of which the main part of the book closes, did not undermine the political foundations of the Lords in the way that is usually assumed; and the House has continued to exercise important functions as a restraining influence on policy and legislation down to our own time. As the only comprehensive treatment of this important subject, Dr Smith's book will immediately become necessary reading for scholars and students; but its lively and engaging style will also appeal to anyone interested in the development of the British Parliamentary constitution, the survival and adaptation of the British aristocracy, and the changing character of British politics and society before the First World War.

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Botero

Niccolò Machiavelli's seminal work, The Prince, argued that a ruler could not govern morally and be successful. Giovanni Botero disputed this argument and proposed a system for the maintenance and expansion of a state that remained moral in character. Founding an anti-Machiavellian tradition that aimed to refute Machiavelli in practice, Botero is an important figure in early modern political thought, though he remains relatively unknown. His most notable work, Della ragion di Stato, first popularised the term 'reason of state' and made a significant contribution to a major political debate of the time--the perennial issue of the relationship between politics and morality--and the book became a political 'bestseller' in the late sixteenth and the seventeenth century. This translation of the 1589 volume introduces Botero to a wider Anglophone readership and extends this influential text to a modern audience of students and scholars of political thought--

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Spencer M. Di Scala

From the Publisher: This essential book fills a serious gap in the field by synthesizing modern Italian history and placing it in a fully European context. Emphasizing globalization, Italy traces the country's transformation from a land of emigration to one of immigration and its growing cultural importance. Including coverage of the April 2008 elections, this updated edition offers expanded examinations of contemporary Italy's economic, social, and cultural development, a deepened discussion on immigration, and four new biographical sketches. Author Spencer M. Di Scala discusses the role of women, gives ample attention to the Italian South, and provides a picture of how ordinary Italians live. Cast in a clear and lively style that will appeal to readers, this comprehensive account is an indispensable addition to the field.

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E. P. Thompson

Thompson turned history on its head by focusing on the political agency of the people, whom historians had treated as anonymous masses.