The Strange Death of Liberal England [Paperback]

George Dangerfield (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0804729301 | ISBN-13: 978-0804729307 | Publication Date: March 1, 1997

At the beginning of the twentieth century England’s empire spanned the globe, its economy was strong, and its political system seemed immune to the ills that inflicted so many other countries. After a resounding electoral triumph in 1906, the Liberals formed the government of the most powerful nation on earth, yet within a few years the House of Lords lost its absolute veto over legislation, the Home Rule crisis brought Ireland to the brink of civil war and led to an army mutiny, the campaign for woman’s suffrage created widespread civil disorder and discredited the legal and penal systems, and an unprecedented wave of strikes swept the land.

This is a classic account, first published in 1935, of the dramatic upheaval and political change that overwhelmed England in the period 1910-1914. Few books of history retain their relevance and vitality after more than sixty years. The Strange Death of Liberal England is one of the most important books of the English past, a prime example that history can be abiding literature. As a portrait of England enmeshed in the turbulence of new movements, which often led to violence against the pieties of Liberal England—until it was overwhelmed by the greatest violence of all, World War I—this extraordinary book has continued to exert a powerful influence on the way historians have observed early twentieth-century England.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“The book is as vital, if not more so, as when it was first published. . . . While hundreds of academic monographs have been forgotten, The Strange Death of Liberal England continues as a major influence on how the period is viewed, and scholars and teachers spend considerable energy in coming to terms with the picture of England, in all its richness and complexity, presented in the book. . . . The interpretation will not die; no matter how often it may be knocked on the head, it has shaped the way the period is viewed. With its extraordinary literate and witty prose, its power of description and analysis . . . it is a study that will always have to be taken into account. There can be few works that are so alive after so many years, as likely to survive, or as enjoyable to read.” —From the Foreword

From the Inside Flap

At the beginning of the twentieth century England’s empire spanned the globe, its economy was strong, and its political system seemed immune to the ills that inflicted so many other countries. After a resounding electoral triumph in 1906, the Liberals formed the government of the most powerful nation on earth, yet within a few years the House of Lords lost its absolute veto over legislation, the Home Rule crisis brought Ireland to the brink of civil war and led to an army mutiny, the campaign for woman’s suffrage created widespread civil disorder and discredited the legal and penal systems, and an unprecedented wave of strikes swept the land.
This is a classic account, first published in 1935, of the dramatic upheaval and political change that overwhelmed England in the period 1910-1914. Few books of history retain their relevance and vitality after more than sixty years. The Strange Death of Liberal England is one of the most important books of the English past, a prime example that history can be abiding literature. As a portrait of England enmeshed in the turbulence of new movements, which often led to violence against the pieties of Liberal England—until it was overwhelmed by the greatest violence of all, World War I—this extraordinary book has continued to exert a powerful influence on the way historians have observed early twentieth-century England.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 364 pages
• Publisher: Stanford University Press (March 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804729301
• ISBN-13: 978-0804729307
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #218,396 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars When England Fell Apart, May 2, 2000

By 

Kevin Welch - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Strange Death of Liberal England (Paperback)

A broad middle-class consensus-based on free trade, free markets and personal liberty-ruled late Victorian England. The consensus collapsed in the first decade of the Twentieth Century. The House of Lords, with far greater powers than it has today, was reactionary and obstructionist. The Irish, the feminists and the labor unions demanded redress for grievances long neglected. The ruling Liberal Party was never able to broker meaningful compromises and the extremists on the left and the right grew more and more powerful. Faced with arson campaigns and general strikes at home and civil war in Ireland, the government seemed about to fall apart when World War I broke out. The Nineteenth Century was gone for good.

It's a complicated history but Dangerfield tells it well. His writing is clear and often humorous, and he has a good sense of story. He never weighs you down with detail, but you never feel you've missed anything important. Some 65 years after it was written, this is as readable as ever. If you have any interest in modern English history, you must read this book.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic but Slanted Account, April 14, 2003

By 

Franklin Noll (Greenbelt, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Strange Death of Liberal England (Paperback)

This book is the classic account of Edwardian Britain and is on the suggested reading list of the Institute for Edwardian Studies...It was written by a contemporary journalist and is a great read. However, it focuses a great deal on the political side and lacks objectivity. An excellent counter-weight to Dangerfield is David Powell, The Edwardian Crisis. This is a first-rate academic revision to what Dangerfield and past scholars have written about the Edwardian period, but it is not really for those new to the subject.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars one of the most entertaining history books you could hope to read:, June 21, 2006

By 

asphlex "asphlex" (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Strange Death of Liberal England (Paperback)

This book is a fascinating nugget of editorial history. A tale of the many (many!) mistakes the British government made in the years leading up to the First World War, George Dangerfield apparently found himself unable to conceal his outrage when reflecting on the sheer idiocy of every political party, the bulk of the members of Parliment, the Prime Minister(s) government(s) as well as the general public at large.

This was a time of rapid change, when the great monarchies were finally dying and the pettiness and complexities of practising Democracy were beginning to polarize the masses with exetremism, fanaticism, and hysterical, ideology-based warnings from every side of the social, political and divine spectrum. The world was transformed into a speeding wheel of surging menace. It was little wonder to many that such a terrible war broke out (WWI, in this instance), only to be followed by the same mistakes being repeated over and over and over again (in the different light of new perspectives) throughout the coming generations.

Dangerfield can finally only laugh at the genuine human comedy of such folly while shuddering in the consequence of a world bickering senselessly over unresolvable issues.

A tremendous, timeless masterpiece.