Sources and Debates in Modern British History: 1714 to the Present

Sources and Debates in Modern British History is a sourcebook designed for undergraduate students taking survey courses in the modern period. The collection illuminates and extends the reader’s understanding of the themes at the heart of Britain’s transformation over the course of the last three centuries. The book is arranged in three chronological parts and includes over 180 sources. Each document is introduced with a brief contextual headnote and a list of discussion questions. A selection of “counterfactual” questions is also provided, as well as an extensive bibliography. Each chapter identifies and provides background information about important historical debates, which introduce students to historiography and illustrate how historians actually work.

List of Documents xi List of Figures xix Preface xxi Abbreviations xxix Part I The Eighteenth Century 1 1 State and Empire 3 The Constitution 4 Threats to the Political and Social Order 11 The Sinews of Empire 18 North America 21 India 24 Historians′ Debates 27 Counterfactuals to Consider 28 2 Economy and Society 29 Honor and Manners 30 The Struggle for Life and Wealth 35 The Poor Law 40 Economic Theory 43 Historians′ Debates 51 Counterfactuals to Consider 52 3 Culture and Identity 53 The Scottish Enlightenment 54 The English Enlightenment 57 Education 62 The Romantic Movement 66 Women 68 Slavery 71 National Identities 76 Historians′ Debates 80 Counterfactuals to Consider 81 Part II The Nineteenth Century 83 4 State and Empire 85 Radicalism and Protest 86 Constitutional Reform 1829–32 90 Further Parliamentary Reform 97 Party Ideologies 103 The Empire 109 The Origins of World War I 120 Historians′ Debates 123 Counterfactuals to Consider 124 5 Economy and Society 127 Industrialization 128 Urban and Rural Life and Employment during Industrialization 135 Social Position and Money 142 Economic Theory 148 Historians′ Debates 156 Counterfactuals to Consider 158 6 Culture and Identity 159 Women 160 Victorian Thinkers 169 Social Darwinism 177 British Identities 182 Irish Identities 185 Historians′ Debates 191 Counterfactuals to Consider 193 Part III The Twentieth Century 195 7 State and Empire 197 World War I 198 World War II and the Cold War 201 Party Ideologies 211 The European Union 214 Empire to Commonwealth 217 Historians′ Debates 227 Counterfactuals to Consider 229 8 Economy and Society 231 Traditional Society 232 Capitalism at Bay 238 War and Civilian Life 243 The Welfare State 245 Historians′ Debates 253 Counterfactuals to Consider 255 9 Culture and Identity 257 Women 258 Minorities and Immigration 263 British Identities 271 Irish Identities 280 Historians′ Debates 287 Counterfactuals to Consider 289 Bibliography 291 Index 297

Ellis Wasson earned his PhD in British history at Cambridge and teaches at Tower Hill School in Wilmington and the University of Delaware. He is the author of Whig Renaissance: Lord Althorp and the Whig Party 1782–1845 (1987), Born to Rule: British Political Elites (2000), and Aristocracy and the Modern World (2006), and has published numerous articles on the history of British politics and European landed society.