The Gothic Bequest
Medieval Institutions in British Thought, 1688–1863

This book examines the use of medieval precedent in political and ecclesiastical debate.

R. J. Smith (Author)

9780521893695, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 20 June 2002

248 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.9 cm, 0.41 kg

Throughout much of their modern history Britons turned to the past for evidence in current controversies. Within this tradition of historical self-justification the Middle Ages had a special place: the early forms of the law and the constitution belong to the medieval centuries while the continuous history of the English Church began in the Saxon age. In this dialogue between present and past new political realities, fresh sensibilities and developing scholarship ensured that the interpretation of the Middle Ages did not for long remain unaltered. This book examines the use of medieval precedent in political and ecclesiastical debate between one such great change, the Revolution of 1688, and the mid-nineteenth-century reforms that ultimately made the tradition of historical apologetic obsolete.

Preface
Abbreviations
Introduction
1. Revolutionary uncertainties, 1688–1714
2. The heirs of sixteen eighty-eight, 1714–45
3. This enlightened age, 1748–c.1776
4. Radicalism, the gothic revival, and the french revolution, 1771–97
5. Reformers and romantics, 1797–1832
6. After reform, 1832–63
Epilogue
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Early modern history: c 1450/1500 to c 1700 [HBLH], British & Irish history [HBJD1]