Tracks Across the Irwell: From the Liverpool & Manchester Railway to the Ordsall Chord

ABSTRACT

Archaeological excavations and built heritage recording has been undertaken by Salford Archaeology (based within the Centre for Applied Archaeology, University of Salford) during the construction of a new rail link across the River Irwell between Manchester and Salford, known as the ‘Ordsall Chord’. The new bridge links existing lines of historic importance, and also crosses the extant remains of the world’s first passenger steam railway, the Liverpool & Manchester Railway, being carried over the Grade I designated ‘Stephenson's Bridge’ at approximately deck level. Six further Grade II designated structures were also affected by the scheme, as were the below-ground remains of a dye works that predated the opening of the railway in the 1830s, and a large livestock market that grew adjacent to the improved transport infrastructure provided by the rail network. This paper discusses the archaeological work undertaken on this important early transport hub during the construction programme in 2015–18.     

Legislating the Melanesian Way: Bernard Narokobi and the Law Reform Commission of Papua New Guinea

Abstract

A common criticism of Bernard Narokobi is that his vision of the ‘Melanesian Way’ was vague and imprecise. This article argues against this claim by describing the activities Narokobi undertook as the head of the Law Reform Commission of Papua New Guinea (1975–8). Using the example of his suggested revision of adultery laws, this article shows that Narokobi realized his abstract vision of the Melanesian Way in the most concrete and specific way possible: by attempting to reform the law. Much of Narokobi's legal reform work was unsuccessful, but a full understanding of his philosophy can only be achieved by reading his legal work alongside his published writings like The Melanesian Way.     

Blessed are the Peacemakers: Canada,the United Nations,and the Search for a Korean Armistice, 1952–53

Abstract

Canada's post-war role as a middle power within the UN system and a strong advocate of negotiated settlement of international disputes focuses on Lester Pearson's role in the Suez Crisis of 1956 and dates Canada's new diplomatic stance from that time. This article argues that Canada's emerging diplomatic stance in fact is grounded in the diplomacy surrounding the Korean War at the beginning of that decade.     

The enlightened narrative in the age of liberal reform: William Robertson’s View of the Progress of Society in Hungary

This article examines a translation of the Scottish historian William Robertson’s probably most famous text (based on a previous German edition) in the journal of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in the 1830s, as a case study on continuity between the Enlightenment and the era of liberal reform in Central Europe. It underlines the benefits of the comparative study of Scotland in Robertson’s time and Hungary in the Reform Age as partners in composite polities at the opposite ends of Europe, where patriotic projects of overcoming limitations of political sovereignty via cultural and economic improvement were pursued. The belated reception of Robertson in Hungary took place within a larger initiative of progress and refinement, associated with the liberal Count István Széchenyi, in an environment where many potential sympathizers with his programme were ambivalent about the values of cosmopolitanism and commerce promoted by Robertson, indebted as they remained to more archaic modes of patriotism. In view of the peculiarities of translation, and selection the Hungarian rendering of the View of the Progress was attuned to the sentiments of this constituency, and may be interpreted as a set of discursive gestures aimed at conquering it for the cause of ‘liberalism as refinement.’     

The crisis of the Italian state: then and now

Abstract

The article argues that Patrick McCarthy's Crisis of the Italian State was a book of great value by an author who was a partisan in the struggle to reform the Italian political system. The book's argument that lasting reform of Italian politics is only possible if middle class Italians begin to act as citizens, rather than as clients who regard the state as a source of potential largesse, has proved to be a far-sighted one, although at the time it seemed simplistic. Many of Italy's current troubles stem from the failure of Italy to go beyond the ‘overworked state’.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: Hans Singer, Neelamber Hatti and Ramesbwar Tandon (eds), Technology Transfer by Multinationals. Paul W. Beamish, Multinational Joint Ventures in Developing Countries. Yves Beigbeder, Management Problems in United Nations Organizations: Reform or Decline? Frits van Holthoon and Marcel van der Linden (eds), Internationalism in the Labour Movement 1830–1940. R. Vos (ed.), From Crisis to Equitable Growth. A New Development Agenda for Latin America. PREALC, In Search of Equity. Planning for the Satisfaction of Basic Needs in Latin America. Margaret Garritsen de Vries, Balance of Payments Adjustment, 1945 to 1986. The IMF Experience. Birol A. Yesilada, Charles D. Brockett and Bruce Drury (eds), Agrarian Reform in Reverse: The Food Crisis in the Third World. J. Hinderink and J. J. Slerkenburg, Agricultural Commercialization and Government Policy in Africa. Piers Blaikie and Harold Brookfield, Land Degradation and Society. Mike Donaldson and Kenneth Good, Articulated Development: Traditional and Capitalist Agriculture in Papua New Guinea. Sun Jingzhi (ed.), The Economic Geography of China. Peter Bowden, National Monitoring and Evaluation, Development Programs in the Third World. Amiya Kumar Bagchi, Public Intervention and Industrial Restructuring in China, India and Republic of Korea. William K. A. Agyei, Fertility and Family Planning in the Third World: A Case Study of Papua New Guinea. G. N. Ramu, Family Structure and Fertility: Emerging Patterns in an Indian City. S. Alessandrini and B. Dallago (eds), The Unofficial Economy: Consequences and Perspectives in Different Economic Systems. The Netherlands Review of Development Studies.     

Dr Thomas Chaplin,Scientist and Scholar in Nineteenth-Century Palestine

Abstract

For a quarter of a century Dr Thomas J. Chaplin (1830–1904) held the position of director of the British Hospital for the Jews in Jerusalem. During these years he acted to improve the medical situation in the city and engaged in scientific researches in a variety of fields. The article critically reviews his activities in the Holy Land and shows that the impact of his works and the contribution of his achievements are diverse. However, by virtue of these achievements and his gracious personality, the Jewish people in Jerusalem named Chaplin as 'The Great English Doctor'.     

‘So that we don't spoil them’: understanding children's everyday mobility through parents’ affective practices

ABSTRACT

Children's everyday mobility and freedom of movement have been closely linked to parental practices, or what has been referred to as parental ‘mobility permits’ or ‘mobility licences’. Most research tends to focus on parental restrictions, while this article explores the affective practices Swedish middle-class parents use in order to enhance their children's mobility, i.e. how emotions are perceived as enabling parents’ and children's spatial experiences and thus their feelings of safety and security; as well as how emotions are talked of as disabling or disrupting the potential for children's mobility. These affective practices are analysed in relation to the parents’ self-reflexive positioning on a continuum between ‘the helicopter parent’ and ‘the engaged and enabling parent’. The material for the article is comprised of 33 interviews with the children's parents, carried out within a larger ethnographic research project on children's everyday mobility in Sweden.     

Review of Periodical Literature and Occasional Publications

Abstract

'Millenarians in the Pennines 1800–1830: Building and Believing Jerusalem'. The legend of the prophet John Wroe and his nineteenth-century millenarian followers remains a cherished part of Pennine folklore. In Ashton-under-Lyne and other mill-towns, Wroe attracted a following committed to his religious direction, living according to the Old Testament Law, and calling themselves 'Israelites'. In the 1820s, the Ashton community constructed an elaborate Sanctuary and four gatehouses, and called their town 'Jerusalem'. Wroe left Ashton in 1831 after sexual allegations; yet his movement persisted for decades. This article presents a new history of Wroe's Israelite sect before 1830, revealing its continuity — in ideas and people — with earlier religious traditions in the region. The phenomenon of a sect believing Ashton could be the New Jerusalem was not the work of one charismatic leader, nor the outcome of economic and religious conditions in one decade; nor were such beliefs a short-lived replacement for old securities. From a newly discovered archive and a range of sources in international and local collections, the buildings, the rites and the regime emergent in 1820s Ashton are shown to be merely the most prominent episode in a larger and more notable regional religious history. Acknowledging the agency available within this movement challenges existing conceptions of millenarianism in the period.     

Being seen in your pyjamas: the relationship between fashion,class, gender and space

Over the last decade class has re-emerged as a significant concept within British sociology, with prominent academics calling for a more Bourdieuian approach which focuses on class distinctions in cultural practices and tastes. Within this discussion, several note the important role fashion plays as a means of class distinction, though few have fully explored just how the fashion–class relationship operates. Based on empirical research, carried out as part of qualitative study into fashion practices and fashion discourse, this article examines the fashion–class relationship, by considering its links to both gender and space. It argues that the way in which women judge visibility and public space differs with class status and that this, in turn, has significant implications for women's fashion choices, and more specifically, dressing up. Indeed, whilst middle-class participants tend to view almost any space as public and one in which they are visible, for working-class participants neighbourhood and local spaces are seen to constitute semi-private spaces, whose audiences' opinions and judgements do not matter. As a result, being dressed in your pyjamas is not deeply problematic for these working-class women in the context of their everyday lives, whilst for their middle-class counterparts being seen in your pyjamas is something which should be avoided, at all cost. Moreover, as the article demonstrates, the wearing of pyjamas is often considered by middle-class respondents as indicative of working classness. And thus, being seen in your pyjamas is undesirable on two counts.     

Richard Oastler,Toryism, Radicalism and the Limitations of Party,c.1807–46

Richard Oastler (1789–1861), the immensely popular and fiery orator who campaigned for factory reform and for the abolition of the new poor law in the 1830s and 1840s, has been relatively neglected by political historians. Few historians, however, have questioned his toryism. As this article suggests, labelling Oastler an ‘ultra‐tory’ or a ‘church and state tory’ obscures more than it reveals. There were also radical strands in Oastler's ideology. There has been a tendency among Oastler's biographers to treat him as unique. By comparing Oastler with other tories – Sadler, Southey, and the young Disraeli – as well as radicals like Cobbett, this article locates him much more securely among his contemporaries. His range of interests were much broader (and more radical) than the historiographical concentration on factory and poor law reform suggests. While there were periods when Oastler's toryism (or radicalism) was more apparent, one of the most consistent aspects of his political career was a distaste for party politics. Far from being unique or a maverick, Oastler personified the pervasive anti‐party sentiments held by the working classes, which for all the historiographical attention paid to popular radicalism and other non‐party movements still tends to get lost in narratives of the ‘rise of party’.     

The Curse of Cromwell: Warrington's Statue of Oliver Cromwell

Abstract

The revision of the historical reputation of Oliver Cromwell in the Victorian period associated with writers such as Thomas Carlyle was expressed in many forms, in histories and biographies, novels, public lectures, magazine articles, and also in the erection of outdoor public statues. Two Cromwell statues were erected in the North of England, Manchester in 1875 and Warrington in 1899. This article traces the history and responses to the installation of the statue of Cromwell, sculpted by John Bell, in Warrington. The gift of a prominent local Liberal businessman, the statue exposed divisions within the community, reinforcing the view that the reassessment of Cromwell's status and place in the making of modern Britain was far from settled. Opposition to the scheme was especially evident within the town's substantial Irish community.     

Kang Youwei’s propaganda adjustments after the Hundred Days Reform, 1898–1900

ABSTRACT

After the failed Hundred Days Reform, Kang Youwei launched a propaganda campaign in the newspapers under his control. In addition to casting himself in a favorable light, the campaign served two other purposes: to justify his own fleeing from China and to solicit foreign intervention to free Emperor Guangxu from house arrest. Immediately following the bloody coup d’etat in 1898, Kang identified Empress-Dowager Cixi as the chief instigator of the tragedy. By 1899, he turned to blaming some of her “evil ministers” as well. A year later he accused both parties. After the founding of Baohuang hui (Chinese Empire Reform Association) in 1899, Kang’s overseas propaganda began to call for an armed rescue mission and for funds from the overseas Chinese communities for this purpose. The adjustments Kang made to his propaganda campaign were echoed by progressive newspapers published inside China. Together, they created a public opinion that forced the Qing government to proceed with the political reform.     

Reappraising Walter Bagehot's Liberalism: Discussion,Public Opinion,and the Meaning of Parliamentary Government

Summary

This article offers a novel and comprehensive account of Walter Bagehot's political thought. It ties together an interpretation of Bagehot's liberal commitment to norms of discussion and deliberation, with an analysis of Bagehot's extensive arguments about the institutions of representative government. We show how Bagehot's opposition to American-style presidentialism, to parliamentary democracy, and to proportional representation were profoundly shaped by his conceptions of government by discussion, and the rule of public opinion. Bagehot's criticisms of English parliamentarianism, both of its pre-1832 and post-1832 varieties were also motivated by those principles, as was his own proposal for parliamentary reform. By examining the whole range of Bagehot's writings on representative government (not merely his preference for parliamentarianism over presidentialism) and by connecting his institutional recommendations to his liberal principles, we are also able to better clarify Bagehot's position in Victorian political thought. The article concludes with a discussion of the debate leading up to the Second Reform Act, in which we elucidate Bagehot's disagreements with other prominent exponents of liberalism including John Stuart Mill, the “university liberals,” and Robert Lowe.     

Regional Journals in Geography: A Vision for the 21st Century*

Abstract

This paper (originally published in The North West Geographer, 1997, 1(1), 2–17)) contributes to the debate on journals in geography and the production of geographical knowledge by considering a hitherto neglected issue – the role of regional journals of geography. Initially, an overview is provided which considers issues such as the status of the regional journal within the discipline and its fortune relative to the changing concerns of geography in the late 20th Century. A case study of The Manchester Geographer then critically appraises this particular journal's contribution to geographical knowledge. Finally, and in conclusion, some suggestions are offered which it is believed would ensure that regional journals perform a useful and unique role in the production of geographical knowledge in the 21st Century.     

Imperial Nationality Policy and the Russian Version of the History of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the Mid-Nineteenth Century

Abstract

This article analyses how changes in Russian nationality policy after the 1830–31 Uprising in Poland and Lithuania led to the initiative of an historical project that sought to prove the Russian nature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It focuses on the tender organized by the Ministry of Education in the 1830s for the publication of a history textbook, which was to form the canon of Russian interpretations of the history of the Grand Duchy. The most important creator of this narrative was Nikolai Ustrialov. According to Ustrialov, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was just as much a Russian state as the Grand Duchy of Moscow, with the sole caveat that the tiny Lithuanian nation had played a part in creating it. Territorial rivalry between these two states was a mere ‘family quarrel’ over which dynasty would prevail. The supremacy of the Lithuanian dynasty did not mean the victory of an alien power since the Lithuanian princes were closely related to Russian princes and moreover, a considerable number of them belonged to the Eastern (Orthodox) Church. Russians could regard therefore them as their own. The last part of this article is devoted to the changes in nationality policy after the 1863–64 Uprising and the requirement for a new interpretation of the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.     

Slavery,Gender and the Meanings of Freedom

Books reviewed in this article: Paul Goodman, Of One Blood: Abolitionism and the Origins of Racial Equality Leslie A. Schwalm, A Hard Fight for We: Women's Transition from Slavery to Freedom in South Carolina Amy Dru Stanley, From Bondage to Contract: Wage Labor, Marriage and the Market in the Age of Slave Emancipation Marli Weiner, Mistresses and Slaves: Plantation Women in South Carolina, 1830–1880     

Radicals,Tories or Monomaniacs? The Birmingham Currency Reformers in the House of Commons, 1832–67*

Benjamin Disraeli described Thomas Attwood as a ‘provincial banker labouring under a financial monomania’. The leader of the Birmingham Political Union, Attwood's Warwickshire accent and support for a paper currency were widely derided at Westminster. However, the themes of Attwood's brief parliamentary career were shared by the other men who represented Birmingham in the early‐ and mid‐Victorian period. None of these MPs were good party men, and this article illuminates the nature of party labels in the period. Furthermore, it adds a new dimension to the historical understanding of debates on monetary policy and shows how local political identities and traditions interacted with broader party identities. With the exception of Richard Spooner, who was a strong tory on religious and political matters, the currency men are best described as popular radicals, who consistently championed radical political reform and were among the few parliamentary supporters of the ‘People's Charter’. They opposed the new poor law and endorsed factory regulation, a progressive income tax, and religious liberty. Although hostile to the corn laws they believed that free trade without currency reform would depress prices, wages and employment. George Frederick Muntz's death in 1857 and his replacement by John Bright marked a watershed and the end of the influence of the ‘Birmingham school’. Bright appropriated Birmingham's radical tradition as he used the town as a base for his campaign for parliamentary reform. He emphasized Birmingham's contribution to the passing of the 1832 Reform Act but ignored the currency reformers' views on other matters, which had often been at loggerheads with the ‘Manchester school’ and economic liberalism.     

The Suez Crisis of 1956 as a moment of transnational humanitarian engagement

Abstract

The Suez Crisis of 1956 is generally seen in historical research as a moment both of Great Britain’s imperial decline and of Egyptian and Arab political self-determination in the Middle East. Yet the humanitarian aspect of this crisis is still neglected, even though it provoked important humanitarian engagements from different sides, Arab as well as Western. By focusing on the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Movement, this article investigates not only motives, forms and structures of humanitarian relief, but also analyses the successes and difficulties of transnational co-operation between Western and non-Western agencies with a special focus on the application of the Geneva Conventions of 1949. Finally, the article addresses the political dimension beyond concrete forms of help by arguing that the Suez Crisis attested to both the persistence of post-colonial structures and the institutionalisation of new, transnational patterns of co-operation.