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Law and Government in England during the Long Eighteenth Century

From Consent to Command

  • Book
  • © 2011

Overview

Authors:
  1. David Lemmings

    1. University of Adelaide, Australia

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Part of the book series: Studies in Modern History (SMH)

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-x
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  2. Introduction: Law, Consent and Command

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 1-16

  3. The Local Experience of Law and Authority: Quarter Sessions, JPs and the People

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 17-55

  4. Going to Law: The Rise and Fall of Civil Litigation

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 56-80

  5. Crime and the Administration of Criminal Law: Problems, Solutions and Participation

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 81-125

  6. Parliament, Legislation and the People: The Idea and Experience of Leviathan

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 126-171

  7. Conclusion: An Imperial State? Governance, People and Law in the Eighteenth Century

    • David Lemmings
    Pages 172-185

  8. Back Matter

    Pages 186-269
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Keywords

About this book

Over the long eighteenth century English governance was transformed by large adjustments to the legal instruments and processes of power. This book documents and analyzes these shifts and focuses upon the changing relations between legal authority and the English people.

Reviews

“This work bridges an important gap between two eras of English political and social history. ... this work deserves the wide audience it will undoubtedly find.” (Aaron Graham, The Journal of the Historical Association, October, 2016)

“This is an enlightening and detailed study, ambitious in its scope and depth. David Lemmings has produced an excellent body of research on law and governance in the eighteenth century and his vast knowledge is reflected in this book. … this book reveals a fascinating aspect of eighteenth-century society and its governance, and will appeal broadly to anybody with an interest in early modern English history.” (Tessa Morrison, Parergon, Vol. 33 (1), 2016)

"This is an impressive work of scholarship. Lemmings offers an analysis of the changing nature of criminal law and civil litigation, and contextualizes this within an exploration of the effect of the new parliament after the Glorious Revolution. He describes a process that saw government grow to dominate society in a way that it had never done before; thus 'in the eighteenth century parliament became Leviathan' (p.128). Parliament, released from the restrictions imposed upon it by the predilictions of previous monarchs, flexed its muscles and passed thousands of individual acts that affected the lives of millions. The emphasis was on control, so the 1714 Riot Act, the infamous Waltham Black Act in 1723 and the 1718 Transportation Act, all of which addressed the problems of crime and civil order (or disorder)...Lemmings has written a challenging book, one that historians of the period need to engage with." - Drew Gray, University of Northampton, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  • University of Adelaide, Australia

    David Lemmings

About the author

DAVID LEMMINGSProfessor of History at the University of Adelaide, Australia. He has published several books on legal culture and governance in eighteenth century England andis editor (with Clare Walker) of Moral Panics, the Media and Law in Early Modern England (2009).

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