Knowra One-nation conservatism One-nation conservatism A tradition of British conservatism that emphasizes social cohesion and duties across class divisions, often pairing existing institutions with reform to reduce social conflict.
Benjamin Disraeli : A British Conservative statesman and novelist who served as prime minister in 1868 and from 1874 to 1880. His novel Sybil gave lasting expression to the idea of a divided nation whose classes shared obligations.
Paternalistic conservatism : A conservative approach in which those with power or wealth accept duties to protect and support people with fewer resources. It explains the tradition’s expectation that social privilege carries obligations.
Harold Macmillan : A British Conservative politician who served as prime minister from 1957 to 1963. His postwar governments combined Conservative leadership with support for welfare provision and economic management.
Thatcherism : The political approach associated with Margaret Thatcher, emphasizing market liberalization, privatization, and a reduced role for the state. Its market-centered reforms are often contrasted with one-nation emphasis on social obligations and cohesion.
Sybil; or, The Two Nations : Benjamin Disraeli’s 1845 novel about poverty and social division in industrial Britain. Its image of rich and poor as separate nations became a touchstone for the tradition.
Social cohesion : The strength of relationships, shared commitments, and trust that bind members of a society. It is the social condition one-nation policies aim to sustain across class divisions.
R. A. Butler : A British Conservative politician and cabinet minister associated with postwar social reform and the 1944 Education Act. His reforms exemplified a pragmatic Conservative effort to widen opportunity.
Neoliberalism : A political and economic approach that favors market competition, private enterprise, and a limited economic role for the state. Its policy priorities can conflict with one-nation support for collective provision and social protection.
Victorian social reform : Legislation and activism addressing poverty, public health, education, and working conditions in Victorian Britain. One-nation thinking took shape amid arguments over whether reform could preserve social order.
Social contract : A political idea that legitimate authority and social cooperation rest on reciprocal obligations among people and institutions. The tradition treats duties between classes as part of a shared political settlement.
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