Political history
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| Subseries of Politics |
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Political history is the narrative and analysis of political events, ideas, movements, and leaders.[1] It is usually structured around the nation state. It is distinct from, but related to, other fields of history such as social history, economic history, and military history.
Generally, political history focuses on events relating to nation-states and the formal political process. According to Hegel, Political History "is an idea of the state with a moral and spiritual force beyond the material interests of its subjects: it followed that the state was the main agent of historical change" [2] This contrasts with, for instance, social history, which focuses predominantly on the actions and lifestyles of ordinary people.[3]
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[edit] Aspects of political history
The first "scientific" political history was written by Leopold von Ranke in Germany in the 19th century. His methodologies profoundly affected the way historians critically examine sources; see historiography for a more complete analysis of the methodology of various approaches to history.
An important aspect of political history is the study of ideology as a force for historical change. One author asserts that "political history as a whole cannot exist without the study of ideological differences and their implications."[4]
Studies of political history typically centre around a single nation and its political change and development. Some historians identify the growing trend towards narrow specialisation in political history during recent decades: "while a college professor in the 1940s sought to identify himself as a "historian", by the 1950s "American historian" was the designation."[5]
From the 1970s onwards, new movements sought to challenge traditional approaches to political history. The development of social history and women's history shifted the emphasis away from the study of leaders and national decisions, and towards the role of ordinary citizens; "...by the 1970s "the new social history" began replacing the older style. Emphasis shifted to a broader spectrum of American life, including such topics as the history of urban life, public health, ethnicity, the media, and poverty."[6] As such, political history is sometimes seen as the more 'traditional' kind of history, in contrast with the more 'modern' approaches of other fields of history.
[edit] Major works of political history
Edward Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, published in four volumes between 1776 and 1781, was one of the earliest comprehensive works of political history. Gibbon has been described as "the first modern historian of ancient Rome."[7]
Leopold von Ranke, often considered the founder of the modern source-based approach to political history, published a number of pioneering works during his lifetime, including History of the Reformation in Germany (published 1881)[8].
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Politics: The historical development of economic, legal, and political ideas and institutions, ideologies and movements. In The Dictionary of the History of Ideas.
- ^ Tosh, John: The Pursuit of History, 2nd edition, London Group UK Limited, USA, 1991, pg.74
- ^ Parthasarathi, Prasannan, "The State and Social History
- ^ Freeman, Joanne B., "Founding Bothers"
- ^ Richard J. Jensen, Historiography of American Political History. In Jack Greene, ed., Encyclopedia of American Political History (New York: Scribner's, 1984), vol 1. pp 1-25
- ^ Brunner, Borgna, "The History of Women's History"
- ^ David Potter, A Companion To The Roman Empire. (Malden, Mass.: Blackwell Pub., 2006), p. 100.
- ^ Deutsche Geschichte im Zeitalter der Reformation (History of the Reformation in Germany, 1845-1847)Google Book Search cf. Fraktur (typeface)
[edit] External links
- http://www.parlements.org/ French Website of the Comité d'histoire parlementaire et politique (Parliamentary and Political History Committee) and its triennial review Parlement(s) Histoire et politique. It contains a lot of information about French political history, including about 900 references of scholarly political history studies
