Early Modern Political Thought and Twenty-First-Century Politics

I love Newcastle and the Lit&Phil, and this workshop on Early Modern Political Thought and Twenty-First-Century Politics in mid-May was probably one of the most fun public history events I have yet participated in.

Rachel Hammersley managed to get together a panel of early modern historians who all had something to say about how the past might speak to the present: John Rees talked about the Putney Debates, in which the Levellers laid out their ideas for a widening of the franchise and accountable government.

Ann Hughes talked about religious toleration then and now, providing much food for thought with her comment that people were usually happy to tolerate things they did not care about. Strict protestants in the seventeenth century meanwhile were more likely to subscribe to the concept of ‘charitable hatred’ (Alexandra Walsham), trying to convince their neighbours of religious truth, as they saw it, for their own good.

Ariel Hessayon talked about the impact of environmental issues on politics and society, asking the question to what extent the Little Ice Age of the early modern period might have contributed to political insecurity and conflict.

My own presentation on two English republican exiles in Europe during the Restoration period meanwhile, aimed to draw parallels to more recent and current political exiles, such as Bertolt Brecht fleeing the Nazis, or the former president of Catalonia Carles Puigdemont escaping the Spanish authorities who accuse him of rebellion and misuse of public funds. At the time this blog post was written, the decision of the authorities in Germany on whether or not to extradite Puigdemont to Spain had not been taken.

There is no need for me to repeat what was being said at the workshop. Both Rachel and Liam Temple have produced excellent summaries of the event, audio files and all.

I just wanted to say what an amazing evening it was debating with my colleagues and members of the audience about political participation at a venue created in the spirit of the Enlightenment and being part of that critical public that should never shut up.

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