The English Constitution

by Walter Bagehot

Overview

Chronicling the past is much easier than chronicling the present, which was exactly Walter Bagehot's project when writing The English Constitution, first published in 1873. His ambitious undertaking was to describe the British government as it actually worked during 1865 and 1866. Government as it functions is very different from the government as it is spelled out on paper. Many factors, including the mindset of the people and the habits of those already in government, affect how a country is run. Political scientists and historians will find Bagehot's commentary on the living English government and invaluable tool in understanding the politics of the era. British journalist WALTER BAGEHOT (1826-1877) was an early editor of The Economist and was among the first economists to discuss the concept of the business cycle. He is also the author of Physics and Politics (1872) and The Postulates of English Political Economy (1885).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781602062566
Publisher:	Cosimo Classics
Publication date:	04/01/2007
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.94(d)

About the Author

Walter Bagehot was an English journalist, businessman, and essayist who lived from 1826 to 1877. He was a prolific writer who wrote extensively about government, economics, literature, and race. He is best known for co-founding the National Review in 1855, a political magazine that aimed to promote conservative values. Bagehot's most famous works include The English Constitution, published in 1867, and Lombard Street: A Description of the Money Market, published in 1873. The English Constitution is considered one of the best accounts of the history and workings of the British political system ever written, while Lombard Street is a detailed analysis of the money market and the role of central banks in regulating it. Bagehot's writing style is characterized by its clarity, concision, and analytical rigor. He was a skilled observer of society and human behavior, and his insights into politics, economics, and culture continue to be relevant today.

Table of Contents

Advertisement; 1. The cabinet; 2. The pre-requisites of cabinet government; 3. The monarchy; 4. The monarchy (cont.); 5. The House of Lords; 6. The House of Commons; 7. On changes of ministry; 8. Its supposed checks and balances; 9. Its history, and the effects of that history; Appendix.

Editorial Reviews

This timely new edition of Bagehot’s classic study is essential reading for today's constitutional reformers and students of Britain's elective dictatorship. Gavin Phillipson’s scholarly and shrewd introduction makes key links between past and present.”  —Lord Lester of Herne Hill QC

From the Publisher