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Molesworth’s An Account of Denmark was one of the canonical works of 18th century Whiggism. It is a detailed description of how tyranny and corruption worked, the institutions that made this possible, and the ideas that supported it.… more

Chamberlin wrote this volume on the role of the United States in World War II just a few years after the surrender of the Axis forces in 1945. This reprint is designed to give history students and scholars a more immediate “window”… more

Whilst in prison for her liberal views Roland wrote a series of letters and reflections which were published in 2 volumes.

The Leveller pamphleteer Richard Overton could not stop himself from denouncing the tyrants who put him in jail for speaking his mind. His “arrow” was “shot from the prison of Newgate into the prerogative bowels of the arbitrary… more

The book contains the code of Hammurabi, the prologue and epilogue, letters by Hammurabi and other political leaders, as well as a detailed discussion of the historical and legal background of Babylonian and Assyrian laws.

Thomas Gordon was the joint author with John Trenchard of these 4 volumes. Almost a generation before Washington, Henry, and Jefferson were even born, two Englishmen, concealing their identities with the honored ancient name of Cato,… more

A facsimile of the 1737 edition. Almost a generation before Washington, Henry, and Jefferson were even born, two Englishmen, concealing their identities with the honored ancient name of Cato, wrote newspaper articles condemning… more

The Clarke Papers chronicle the debates which took place in the Army during the English Civil War over the relationship between Parliament and the Army.

Considerations is considered de Staël’s magnum opus and sheds renewed light on the familiar figures and events of the Revolution, among them, the financier and statesman Jacques Necker, her father.

One of the earliest histories of the French Revolution by the daughter of the last minister of Financer of the Old Regime (Necker) and one of the leading classical liberals of her day.

A collection of constitutional documents from the English Revolution of the mid-17th century. They include parliamentary speeches, letters and declarations by the monarch, legal proceedings, and other documents. They are preceded by… more

A two volume collection of journal entries and letters between Tocqueville and Nassau Senior between 1834 and 1859. Vol. 1 contains material from 1834 to 1851. Vol. 2 contains material from 1851 to 1859.

The Crisis of the Seventeenth Century collects nine essays by Trevor-Roper on the themes of religion, the Reformation, and social change. As Trevor-Roper explains in his preface, “the crisis in government, society, and ideas which… more

The bulk of Bongie’s work consists of the writings of French readers of Hume who were confronted, first, by the ideology of human perfection and, finally, by the actual terrors of the French Revolution. These vitally important… more

An analysis of the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen showing the impact which American practice and theory had on French thinking about constitutional law.

“Cato” (of Cato’s Letter’s) continues his attack on the waste and militarism of the British Empire which this critique of the idea of permanent “standing” armies.

Price gave this sermon to commemorate the 101st anniversary of the Glorious Revolution of 1688. As a vigorous supporter of this revolution as well as the American and French Revolutions he incurred the wrath of Edmund Burke who wrote… more

An early piece by Cobden on foreign policy and free trade written under the pseudonym of “A Manchester Manufacturer.”

Taine’s 3 volume history of the French Revolution, written from a conservative perspective.

Burke continued arguing about the French Revolution throughout the 1790s in a series of letters and pamphlets, the most significant being “An Appeal from the New to the Old Whigs”.

An optimistic and rationalist account of the French Revolution based upon first-hand, eyewitness experiences. It was intended to defend the Revolution against critics like Burke. Wollstonecraft explained the violent excesses of the… more

A posthumously published collection of essays on historical topics and important political and literary figures which had appeared in magazines such as the North American review, the Edinburgh Review, the Pall Mall Gazette, and the… more

This volume contains many essays on 17th century English history, the revolution, the restoration, Scotland, the Roman Empire, books reviews, and French history. It also contains his narrative history of France from 561-583. There… more

A collection of Acton’s articles from journals such as the Quarterly Review, the English Historical Review, the Nineteenth Century, the Rambler, the Home and Foreign Review, the North British Review, and the Bridgnorth Journal.

A 4 volume set of Machiavelli’s writings.

A four volume work on the Graeco-Persian wars of 490 and 480-79 BC.

James Mill’s History is a work of Benthamite “philosophical history” from which the reader is supposed to draw lessons about human nature, reason and religion, and the deleterious impact of commercial monopolies like the East India… more

An 8 volume work which took Lecky 19 years to complete and which made his reputation as a scholar. Volumes I and II cover the period 1700-1760; vol.s 3 and 4 1760-1784; vols. 5 and 6 1784-1793; and vol.s 7 and 8 1793-1800.

Hume’s great History of England the theme of which is liberty, above all English constitutional development from the Anglo-Saxon period to the Revolution of 1688. This Liberty Fund edition is based on the edition of 1778, the last to… more

Acton never completed his projected History of Liberty. The collection contains two chapters from this planned history - on liberty in antiquity and Christianity - and many book reviews where one can piece together Acton’s approach… more

Livy’s History of Rome begins with its founding and continues up to the reign of Augustus.

A very detailed 2 volume history of the British efforts to abolish the Atlantic slave trade by a Quaker leader of the abolitionist movement.

Thierry was a pioneering liberal historian who collected large bodies of primary source material to use in his writings. He is particular remembered for his class analysis based upon the idea of conquest. This work is a classic… more

A 12 volume set of Gibbon’s magisterial history of the end of the Roman Empire, one of the greatest works of history written during the Enlightenment.

A history of the empire from the second century to the fall of the empire after Napoleon. Supplemental chapters deal with the new German Empire after 1870.

A 2 volume work on the history and current economic and political problems of Ireland. Vol. 1 contains the historical section and his analysis of the Irish aristocracy. Vol. 2 continues Beaumont’s discussion of the Irish aristocracy.… more

The original French edition of Beaumont’s 2 volume work on the history and social and political structure of Ireland. This contains the footnotes which are missing from the English translation.

Judgments on History and Historians consists of records collected by Emil Dürr from Burckhardt’s lecture notes for history courses at the University of Basel from 1865 to 1885. The notes span five eras: Antiquity, the Middle Ages,… more

These are the lectures given by the great English classical liberal historian, Lord Acton, in the academic years 1899-1901 at Cambridge University. It is a survey of modern history from the rise of the modern nation state to the… more

Delivered at Cambridge University between 1895 and 1899, Lectures on the French Revolution is a distinguished account of the entire epochal chapter in French experience by one of the most remarkable English historians of the… more

Delivered at Cambridge University between 1895 and 1899, Lectures on the French Revolution is a distinguished account of the entire epochal chapter in French experience by one of the most remarkable English historians of the… more

Millar writes letters to the Right Honourable Charles James Fox pointing out the harmful effects the war against France will have.

A collection of letters from Acton to Gladstone’s daughter Mary which shows a “family” side to Acton’s life.

Priestley supported the early phase of the French Revolution and saw it as an advance in human liberty, thus objecting to Burke’s severe criticisms.

A lengthy biography (along with many letters) of the leading advocate for free trade in mid-19th century Britain.

Suetonius’ most famous work of the lives of the 12 Caesars along with his shorter biographies of famous grammarians, rheoticians and poets.

A 2 volume collection of material originally edited by Gustave de Beaumont after his death. Vol. 1 contains an autobiography, some previously unpublished essays, France before the Consulate, and letters. Vol. 2 contains additional… more

This is the first part of a planned history of the French Revolution. Tocqueville did not live to complete the work. Part one deals with the origins of the Revolution and the centralization of the French bureaucracy.

A 4 volume collection of Cicero’s orations which consisted of his political and legal speeches in which he often expressed his political views.

Hippolyte Taine’s 5 part history of modern France, The Origins of Contemporary France, in 6 volumes. They are The Old Regime (1875); The Revolution, vol. 1 Anarchy (1878); The Revolution, vol. 2 The Jacobin Conquest (1881); The… more

A five volume translation by Dryden.

The influential late 16th century translation of Plutarch’s lives of famous Greeks and Romans.

Gordon’s criticisms of war, empire, and political corruption in Cato’s Letters (1720-23) are quite well known. Less well known are the very similar and much more extensive criticisms which he included as prefaces to his translations… more

A two volume collection of the political writings of Richard Cobden which focuses on foreign policy, and war and peace.

These are Tocqueville’s memoirs of the 1848 Revolution in France during which he was a Member of the Chamber of Deputies and a supporter the “party or order” against the socialists.

A 19th century arabic attempt to identify the strengths of the West (free institutions, critical learning, and scientific and technical skills) and to urge fellow Muslims to adopt them without harming their Muslim faith.

Volney’s best known work deals with the origins of human society, of government and laws, the evolution of society, and the reasons for the decline and fall of empires.

Another early work on foreign policy and trade by Richard Cobden written under the pseudonym of “A Manchester Manufacturer.”

A collection of Andrew Fletcher’s political writings which include his discourse on militias, two further dicourses, speeches, and a conversation about the right regulation of governments.

A selection from Acton’s large mass of correspondence including a number to Gladstone on the budget, foreign affairs, Acton’s library, and women’s suffrage.

A 600 page collection of primary sources on such topics as the Germans and the Empire, the Papacy, the struggle between the Empire and the Papacy, the Church, Feudalism, the Courts, Monasticism, the Crusades, and Social Classess and… more

A two volume collection of John Bright’s speeches. Vol. I contains speeches on India, Canada, America, Ireland, and Russia; Vol. II contains speeches on Reform, Free Trade, Agriculture, Peace, Taxation, and other matters.

A facsimile of the first edition of this essay. Condorcet’s essay is an early defence of the right of women to particpate in politcs. It was written during the first years of the French Revolution.

Tocqueville’s Voyages is a collection of newly written essays by some of the most well-known Tocquevillian scholars today. The essays in the first part of the volume explore the development of Tocqueville’s thought, his intellectual… more

The Levellers were a political movement active in England from 1646 to 1649. They were a populist movement that emphasized equal rights, religious toleration, and reformation of political and judicial corruption. They are… more

A two volume work in which Hodgskin describes in great detail the economic, political, legal, and social conditions he observed in his travels across northern Germany.

Arthur Young was an 18th century pioneer in the detailed observation of economic conditions in the countryside and the collection of statistical data relating to agriculture. He was extraordinarily lucky in being in France on the eve… more

A strong defence of the benefits of free trade and an open and tolerant society in which economic, social and religious liberties go hand in hand to make a vibrant society like late 17th century Holland. The book angered some clerics… more

A two volume collection of inlfuential English translations of the writings of Machiavelli during the Tudor period.

Vindiciae Gallicae was Mackintosh’s contribution to the debate begun by Burke’s Reflections on the Revolution in France. A Discourse on the Law of Nature and Nations was the introduction to a popular course of public lectures at… more

Cobden reflects on how the Crimean War can best be ended without humiliating Russia and helping her be integrated into the world market again.

A six volume collection of Cobbett’s essays and journalism.

Thomas Gordon’s translation of Sallust’s histories with Gordon’s lengthy commentaries and his translation of Cicero’s Four Orations against Catiline, and other speeches. This copy was owned by John Adams and has his name on the title… more

An 8 volume edition of The Works of William Robertson (1840). It contains his major works of history: The History of Scotland (1759) in vols. 1 and 2; A View of the Progress of Society in Europe in vol 3; The History of the Reign of… more