Front Page Groups & Collections 19th Century English Radical Individualists

School of Thought: 19th Century English Radical Individualists

In the late 19thC in Britain, as the Liberal Party gradually abandoned classical liberalism for various aspects of the welfare state and imperialism, a new group of “old liberals” emerged. They were active in the Liberty and Property Defence League organised by Lord Wemyss. They believed in natural rights, a rigorous defence of individual liberty, opposition to the welfare state, and opposition to war and empire. This group eventually disappeared by the outbreak of the First World War.

For more information see:

• The Introduction to Thomas Mackay
• Eric Mack’s Introduction to Auberon Herbert, The Right and Wrong of Compulsion by the State, and Other Essays, ed. Eric Mack (Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 1978).
• Eric Mack’s Foreword to Herbert Spencer, The Man versus the State, with Six Essays on Government, Society and Freedom, ed. Eric Mack, introduction by Albert Jay Nock (Indianapolis: LibertyClassics, 1981).

8 People in this Group: