HISTORY AND POLITICAL CULTURE: Namier

Abstract

[Every page of Sir Lewis Namier’s (1888–1960) work bears the distinct imprint of his bold, analytical mind, his slightly sardonic judgment, and his illuminating wit. While the style is immediately recognizable, the argument is never predictable, and Sir Lewis, born in the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, and recently knighted in England where he has lived and taught for many decades, has been a somewhat unconventional critic of past historians and contemporary Concerned with the relation of politics to culture, of men to ideas and institutions, his study of the members of George III’s first Parliament, The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III (1929), fundamentally revised the traditional picture of eighteenth century English politics and by his use of hitherto neglected biographical details of minor political figures introduced a new way of analyzing political history. His shorter works on European diplomacy are also characterized by his meticulous attention to detail as well as by his exceptional grasp of the character of men and epochs. He is now one of the editors of the projected History of Parliament.