Sir Robert Peel - paragon or pariah? Peel was the greatest
political leader in mid-Victorian Britain and a titan of
Conservative politics. He held the greatest offices of state over a
political career spanning forty years and was twice Prime Minister.
He was a tireless reformer who put "nation" before "party" with a
range of modernizing measures including giving political rights to
Catholics, reform of banking, the railways, the criminal law and
prisons, as well as founding the Metropolitan Police. He introduced
"free-trade" budgets and repealed the Corn Laws to give cheap food
to Britain's growing industrial and urban population. He was the
first acknowledged leader of the Conservative Party and the Founder
of Modern Conservatism. Yet Peel's seemingly peerless reputation
has never been secure. Abolition of the Corn Laws split his party,
his "Peelite" supporters joined the Liberals and the Conservatives
remained in opposition for thirty years.
Richard Gaunt, drawing on a huge archive of state papers,
contemporary writings -- including Peel's own memoirs -- and the
latest historiography, paints a convincing picture of Peel as a
exponent of effective government in the modern industrial state, of
a calculating practitioner, supremely self-confident, who dominated
both his Party and the House of Commons. And even Conservative
"backwoodsmen" were moving towards Peel's new model Conservatism.
Gaunt's thoughtful, revisionist study is essential for all students
of Peel and mid-Victorian politics.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
