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THE PARADOX OF PEEL AS CARLYLEAN HERO

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 1997

JOHN MORROW
JOHN MORROW
Affiliation:
Victoria University of Wellington
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Abstract

Thomas Carlyle's promotion of Sir Robert Peel as a heroic statesman capable of presiding over a strongly interventionist state is paradoxical in light of the latter's rejection of paternalistic government. This paradox is heightened by Carlyle's hostility to the whigs: some members of this party identified an active role for the state and struggled against tendencies in whiggism which were connected to the ‘liberal toryism’ of Peel and his followers. An examination of Carlyle's knowledge of, and attitude towards, Peel shows that he was aware of his attraction to liberal economic ideas. However, Carlyle believed that Peel's sense of moral purpose and his cool view of conventional parliamentarianism were indicative of heroic potentials that were not possessed by whig politicians. The popularity which Peel enjoyed in the late 1840s was attributed by Carlyle to a widespread appreciation of his distinctive qualities; this provided the grounds for a generalized heroism which could be focused in an active state that was freed from the trammels of both economic liberalism and parliamentarianism.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Historical Journal , Volume 40 , Issue 1 , March 1997 , pp. 97 - 110
Copyright
© 1997 Cambridge University Press

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Footnotes

I wish to thank Mark Francis and Mark Garnett for their comments upon an early version of this article. I am also grateful for observations offered by members of the audience at the Cambridge Historical Society, the History of Political Thought seminar, Institute of Historical Research, University of London, and Politics Department seminars at the University of East Anglia and the University of Edinburgh.