Leading Works in the History of the Constitution

Reviews / Votes

"A rich, diverse and significant collection of essays on the texts, commentaries, parliamentary acts, court cases - even the cartoons - that have most powerfully sought to define or intervene in Britain's unwritten constitution. The experts brought together in this landmark volume tell a compelling story about the evolution of the British constitution, and its legacy elsewhere."

Professor Alice Hunt, University of Southampton, UK

"This collection revives the old tradition of lawyers doing constitutional history, but without the distortion of the old 'Whig interpretation'. Sir William Blackstone was not a Whig, as the book shows. In an outstanding chapter, Baroness Hale shows why Entick v. Carrington (1765) was as important a curb on executive overreach as her own judgments in Miller I and Miller II. In another, Anne Twomey shows how the long shadow of British constitutional law still lies over the common-law former Dominions. The book should be carefully read by historians and political scientists as well as by lawyers."

Professor Iain McLean FBA FRSE, Senior Research Fellow, Nuffield College, University of Oxford, UK

"This is a wonderfully eclectic miscellany. Every chapter is erudite, insightful and thought-provoking. The collection will be of great interest to anyone with a serious curiosity about British constitutional history."

Professor Brice Dickson, Emeritus Professor of International and Comparative Law, Queen's University Belfast, UK

"The essays in the book, brought together under the expert editorship of Dr Chris Monaghan, are a fascinating mixture of studies of 'works' of three kinds. First, there are chapters examining the raw materials and foundational phenomena of the UK's constitution, including Magna Carta, the Petition of Rights, Instrument of Government, Toleration Act, Act of Settlement, union with Scotland, Government of India Act, and the classic judgment in Entick v. Carrington. Secondly, there are essays on major commentaries on the constitution by people who made more or less important contributions to understanding and developing it, such as Sir John Fortescue, Bolingbroke, Blackstone, De Lolme, Wollstonecraft, Burke and Erskine May. Finally, contributors look at other ways of representing or understanding the constitution, including caricatures and comparative perspectives.

The topics and contributors have been well chosen, providing both expertise and an unexpected take on a history too often taken for granted. Every essay offers fresh perspectives, new understandings and a thought-provoking, entertaining read. Each chapter opened my eyes to new ideas and put my previous understanding (or misunderstanding) of the constitution in a new light. For example, the fascinating chapter on Mary Wollstonecraft as a constitutional thinker makes a strong case for regarding her as a significant contributor to the cultural history of the constitution. The text is a tour de force of editorial planning and authorship. Participants have produced a valuable asset for both students and scholars of our historical constitution. It will enrich the thinking and writing of all who use it. I am delighted to recommend the book."

Professor David Feldman KC (Hon), FBA, Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of English Law, University of Cambridge, UK