Introduction. Party in history and politics; 1. Background, contexts, and discourses; 2. Rapin on the origins and nature of party division in Britain; 3. Bolingbroke's country party opposition platform; 4. David Hume's early essays on party politics; 5. Faction detected? Pulteney, Perceval, and the Tories; 6. Hume on the parties' speculative systems of thought; 7. Hume and the history of party in England; 8. Political transformations during the Seven Years' War: Hume and Burke; 9. 'Not men, but measures': John Brown on free government without faction; 10. Edmund Burke and the Rockingham Whigs; 11. Burke's thoughts on the cause of the present discontents; 12. Burke and his party in the age of revolution; 13. Burke and the Scottish enlightenment; Conclusion.
Offers a fundamental re-evaluation of the origins and importance of the idea of 'party' in British politics and political thought.
Max Skjönsberg is a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of History at the University of Liverpool. An intellectual and political historian of the eighteenth century, he has published articles in the Historical Journal, Journal of British Studies, History of Political Thought, Modern Intellectual History, and History of European Ideas. He has previously lectured in history and political theory at the University of St Andrews and the University of York. In addition to being awarded the 2013 Skinner Prize from the University of London, he was David Hume Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities at the University of Edinburgh in 2018, and received the Parliamentary History Essay Prize in 2020.
'The Persistence of Party is an original book. Skjönsberg offers a
rich intellectual history revolving around the discussion of party
politics in eighteenth-century Britain.' Antong Liu, LSE Review of
Books
'The reader of his book learns not only much about neglected
figures in the history of the theory of party politics, like Rapin,
Brown, and several others whom I have not been able to discuss
here, but also much about the ever-changing nature of party
politics in Britain during this period, from the start of Whig
hegemony in 1714 to the cleavage of the Whig party into Foxites and
Pittites in the 1790s. The theoretical point, ... is that the study
of the history of political thought sometimes needs to be at the
same time study of the details of real-world political practice.'
James A. Harris, History of European Ideas
'Max Skjönsberg traces the 18th-century dialogue about this
'enduring and crucial part of British politics' in his outstanding
new book, The Persistence of Party.' William Anthony Hay, Law &
Liberty
'In The Persistence of Party, Max Skjönsberg proves himself an
outstanding guide through this fruitful but complex period … Any
student of constitutionalism will benefit from this thorough
treatment of a rich period of political history.' John G. Grove,
Kirk Center
'Skjönsberg's study … helps us remain alert tothe dangers that lurk
if we fail tofind ways to channel party so as to lower, rather
thanraise, the temperature. Skjönsberg's title is thus well chosen.
Whilst he does notpretend that the eighteenth century will somehow
magic up answers for the twenty-first,he rightly encourages us to
take on board a key lesson of the eighteenth century: that party
will persist.' John G. Grove, Law & Liberty
'At the book's core are rich discussions of printed and archival
primary sources … Recommended.' M. G. Spencer, Choice Magazine
'Skjönsberg has produced an important and well-written book. It
brings together persuasive readings of the major authors on party
in eighteenth-century Britain and roots them in the immediate
contexts to which they were responding effectively. It should be
required reading for anyone wanting to understand thinking about
party in this period.' Andrew C. Thompson, Intellectual History
Review
'Max Skjönsberg's informative and engaging new book … addresses the
way political thinkers grapple with the perils of partisanship … It
is clearly organized, and Skjönsberg presents the arguments crisply
and directly. The source base is impressive and includes
correspondence and papers alongside the published works. At a time
when partisan polarization seems more dangerous than ever, this
book provides an illuminating look at the origin of those
concerns.' Chris Dudley, Journal of British Studies
'… a reliable history of ideas about party in eighteenth-century
Britain.' William Selinger, Eighteenth-Century Studies
'The chapters, harmoniously balanced in their own right, with solid
prose and tight conclusions, build out into a fascinating story of
concord and discord, true to the productive dysfunction that
parties, at their best, represent. The myriad ways of looking at
party laid out in this excellent book can only have continued
salience, as we continue to puzzle over why we are so polarized -
and to ask whether our divisions might, in some ways, be what binds
us together.' John Owen Havard, The Scriblerian and the Kit-Cat
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