John Wilkes A Friend to Liberty

by Thomas, Peter D. G.

• ISBN13: 9780198205449
• ISBN10: 0198205449
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1996-07-25
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Often deemed the founder of British radicalism, John Wilkes (1725-1797) had a shattering impact on the politics of his time. His audacity in challenging government authority was matched by his skill and determination in attaining his objectives: the freedom of the press to criticize ministersand report Parliament; enhanced security for individuals and their property from arbitrary arrest and seizure; and the rights of electors. That he was a political maverick, of witty and wicked reputation, has led historians to underestimate him - this is the first researched biography since 1917.Contemporaries appreciated his achievements more than posterity, one obituarist writing that 'his name will be connected with our history'. In this fascinating and original biography, Peter Thomas provides an intriguing portrait of the man George III referred to as 'that Devil, Wilkes'.

Author Biography

Peter D. G. Thomas is Professor of History at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. v
List of Plates	p. ix
Gadfly of Government1761-1763	p. 13
The Case of North Briton, Number Forty-Five	p. 27
Election for Middlesex1768	p. 71
Expulsion from Middlesex1769	p. 90
The Reporting of Parliamentary Debates: the Wilkes Coup of 1771	p. 125
City Politician1771-1775	p. 141
Parliamentary Politician1774-1790	p. 176
Work and Leisure1776-1797	p. 200
Radical or Rascal	p. 215
Select Bibliography	p. 221
Notes	p. 229
Index	p. 271
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