Essays in the History of Liberty (Selected Writings of Lord Acton) [Paperback]

John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0865970475 | ISBN-13: 978-0865970472 | Publication Date: December 1, 1985

European History

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About the Author

H B Acton (1908-1974) taught at Bedford College (London), the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Chicago; was editor of Philosophy, the influential journal of the British Royal Institute of Philosophy; and wrote, among other books, The Morals of Markets (1971; Liberty Fund, 1993) and The Philosophy of Language in Revolutionary France (1959).

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 588 pages
• Publisher: Liberty Fund (December 1, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0865970475
• ISBN-13: 978-0865970472
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #418,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.0 out of 5 stars American History from an Englih Point of View, July 16, 2011

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George "Tacitus" (Monteagle, Tunisia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Essays in the History of Liberty (Selected Writings of Lord Acton) (Paperback)

This is an interesting review of American and Diplomatic history through Lord Acton's lens. He does this through various book reviews and essays circa 1860. The problem is he refers to people, places and events completely unfamiliar to someone who was not widely read in the 1860's. However on the whole his observations are cogent and European.
One interesting example of his misreading of the future is his review of the American Constitutional Convention and the political history surrounding it, which he wrote on 1861 just as the Civil War was beginning in which he concludes the Union has disappeared for all time, and that Hamilton was basically correct when he favored a constitutional monarchy over a democratic republic because of divergent views between North and South. Of course the Union survived stronger than ever, and the wisdom of the founding fathers of the Constitution proved provident.
However, the divergent views of the members of the convention which are basically smothered by all the apotheosis surrounding the founding fathers by writers of American history, is eye opening. Apparently, for Washington, Adams, and Hamilton, the Constitution was a compromise they accepted because all the other choices seemed worse or unobtainable.