Victorian Christian Socialism began as a protest against industrial evils by a group of Anglicans in 1848 - the year of the great Chartist demonstration. In F. D. Maurice it had a prophet and a thinker whose ideas inspired subsequent Christians, so that the ideals of the original Christian Socialists began to spread to other Churches. The result was a series of critiques of the England of their day, rather than a systematic 'movement', and is best analysed, as it is in this book, through an examination of the leading figures, who in addition to Maurice include Charles Kingsley, Thomas Hughes and John Ruskin. The present study is not a collection of biographical studies, however, but a history of Christian Socialism constructed around the most influential of its advocates. They are shown to have been ethical and educational reformers rather than politicians, but in their ability to stand outside the common assumptions and prejudices of their day they achieved social criticism of lasting value.

In this book, Anthony Williams investigates the history of Christian Socialist thought in Britain from the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth century. Through analysis of the writings of ten key Christian Socialists from the period, Williams reframes the ideology of Christian Socialism as a coherent and influential body of political thought - moving the study of Christian Socialism away from historical narratives and towards political ideology. The book sheds new light on a key period in British political development, in particular Williams demonstrates how the growth of the Christian Socialist movement exercised a profound impact on the formation of the British Labour party, which would go on to radically change 20th century politics in Britain.

Christian Socialism arose in England in the mid-nineteenth century as a response to the philosophy of 'political economy' - now commonly called neoliberalism. Seeking not institutional change or nationalisation, but a reform of the moral underpinnings of society, it refuted the assumption that people are essentially selfish, competitive individuals seeking nothing but personal happiness. Although they did not deny the presence of selfishness, its proponents believed that the social nature of humankind lies deeper than such egotism and conflict, and pursued a society built on this belief. Less prominent now than at the time of its inception, Christian Socialism nevertheless continues into the twenty-first century, its goal nothing less than a new society built upon the virtues of equality, fellowship, cooperation, service and justice. Philip Turner's careful exposition traces the history of this strand of Anglican political thought and restores confidence in its message for the future.

Christian-Muslim Relations, a Bibliographical History Volume 17 (CMR 17), covering Great Britain, the Netherlands and Scandinavia in the period 1800-1914, is a further volume in a general history of relations between the two faiths from the 7th century to the early 20th century. It comprises a series of introductory essays and the main body of detailed entries. These treat all the works, surviving or lost, that have been recorded. They provide biographical details of the authors, descriptions and assessments of the works themselves, and complete accounts of manuscripts, editions, translations and studies. The result of collaboration between numerous leading scholars, CMR 17, along with the other volumes in this series, is intended as a tool for research in Christian-Muslim relations. Section Editors: Clinton Bennett, Luis F. Bernabé Pons, Jaco Beyers, Emanuele Colombo, Lejla Demiri, Martha Frederiks, David D. Grafton, Stanisław Grodź, Alan Guenther, Vincenzo Lavenia, Arely Medina, Alain Messaoudi, Diego Melo Carrasco, Gordon Nickel, Claire Norton, Radu Păun, Reza Pourjavady, Douglas Pratt, Charles Ramsey, Peter Riddell, Umar Ryad, Cornelia Soldat, Karel Steenbrink, Charles Tieszen, Carsten Walbiner, Catherina Wenzel

A compelling look at the origins of British socialism The Making of British Socialism provides a new interpretation of the emergence of British socialism in the late nineteenth century, demonstrating that it was not a working-class movement demanding state action, but a creative campaign of political hope promoting social justice, personal transformation, and radical democracy. Mark Bevir shows that British socialists responded to the dilemmas of economics and faith against a background of diverse traditions, melding new economic theories opposed to capitalism with new theologies which argued that people were bound in divine fellowship. Bevir utilizes an impressive range of sources to illuminate a number of historical questions: Why did the British Marxists follow a Tory aristocrat who dressed in a frock coat and top hat? Did the Fabians develop a new economic theory? What was the role of Christian theology and idealist philosophy in shaping socialist ideas? He explores debates about capitalism, revolution, the simple life, sexual relations, and utopian communities. He gives detailed accounts of the Marxists, Fabians, and ethical socialists, including famous authors such as William Morris and George Bernard Shaw. And he locates these socialists among a wide cast of colorful characters, including Karl Marx, Henry Thoreau, Leo Tolstoy, and Oscar Wilde. By showing how socialism combined established traditions and new ideas in order to respond to the changing world of the late nineteenth century, The Making of British Socialism turns aside long-held assumptions about the origins of a major movement.

This book examines British socialist political economies and the way in which they have influenced economic thinking within the Labour Party from the Fabianism at the beginning of the century to the Blairism of today.

`In Political Economy and the Labour Party, Noel Thompson gives an informative and stimulating outline of the ideas and theories that have shaped the party’s economic policy since 1900.’ - Times Literary Supplement A new edition of the American Library Association's `Outstanding Academic Book' award winner. This new volume brings this study of the rich tradition of British socialist political economy and its influence on the British Labour Party fully up-to-date. Surveying the Labour tradition from the Fabianism of the Webbs to the `social-ism’ of Tony Blair’s Third Way, this new edition considers the critical engagement of these political economies with capitalism and the policies they articulate. It also discusses the manner in which they influence, or establish the context for, Labour’s economic thinking and policymaking and traces the ideological trajectory British social democratic political economy over the course of the twentieth century. In its concluding chapter this volume assesses the present character of the political economy advanced by the Labour Party and raises the question as to whether it can any longer be considered part of the social democratic tradition. This is an essential new edition of this now standard text for students taking courses on the history of political and economic thought and, more generally, courses on the political and intellectual history of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Britain.

Following the tradition of the great literary quarterlies, the journal discussed every aspect of human endeavor, and Out of Due Time offers a fine opportunity to view the best of the Catholic mind in an extraordinary period.

F.D. Maurice (1805-72) was one of Victorian Britain's most controversial thinkers. Although he came from a Unitarian family and counted leading Unitarians as his friends, their influence on his work has never been seriously examined. The purpose of this new book is to look at his life and teaching in the light of Unitarianism. Maurice's faith had a distinctly Christological emphasis, but he continued to value his Unitarian heritage. His concern with the Fatherhood of God and the dignity of the human race owes much to his family background. Young's study opens with a compact history of Unitarianism during the lifetimes of Maurice and his father, a Unitarian minister. A series of biographical sketches draws on hitherto unpublished material to set Maurice's work in its historic context. Final chapters compare the central themes of his theology with the teaching of his Unitarian contemporaries.

Arguably no modern ideology has diffused as fast as Socialism. From the mid-nineteenth century to the last quarter of the twentieth socialist ideals played a crucial part not only in the political sphere, but also influenced the way people worked and played, thought and felt, designed and decorated, hoped and yearned. By proposing general observations on the relationship between socialism, imagination, myth and utopia, as well as bringing the late nineteenth century socialist culture – a culture imbued with Biblical narratives, Christian symbols, classic mythology, rituals from freemasonry, Viking romanticism, and utopian speculations – together under the novel term ‘socialist idealism’, The Style and Mythology of Socialism: Socialist Idealism, 1871–1914 draws attention to the symbolic, artistic and rhetorical ways that socialism originally set the hearts of people on fire.