Description
Located within the dense associational networks that marked Edinburgh as an international city and the capital of a stateless nation, this paper examines the politicisation of Scotland’s middle classes in the nineteenth century. Conceptualised within civil society, urban elites built and negotiated their class formation through the governance of the nation.This process involved the politicisation of associational culture at several different levels, not all of which I have time to engage with today. These include the negotiation of power and patronage with the landed aristocracy, the role of political appointments within educational institutions and scientific associations, the independence of action which marked this history of medical, poor law and public health reform, and the evolution and maturation of the balance between associational organisations and the institutions of local government.
The politicisation of middle-class associational culture developed in opposition to the centralisation of administrative functions in Westminster. In Scotland this process was shaped by the remnants of a court and parliament once located in Edinburgh, by a recalibration in the relationship of the Presbyterian church to local government following the Disruption of 1843, and by debate on the meaning and promotion of ‘self-government’ after mid century
| Period | 20 Jul 2023 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Organise! Organise! Organise! Collective Action, Associa- tional Culture And The Politics Of Organisation In Britain And Ireland, C.1790-1914 |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Durham, United KingdomShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |