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Voluntary Societies and British Urban Elites, 1780–1850: An Analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 February 2009

R. J. Morris
R. J. Morris
Affiliation:
University of Edinburgh
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Extract

Whilst it would be wrong to claim that voluntary societies in Britain were new in the period 1780 to 1850, the growth of large industrial and urban populations was accompanied by an increase in the foundation and prosperity of such societies. These societies were diverse in their purpose, form, size and membership. Edward Baines, junior, one of the self-appointed tribunes of the industrial middle class, in 1843 described recent developments as follows:

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Articles
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The Historical Journal , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , March 1983 , pp. 95 - 118
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Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1983

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61 I prefer to reserve the term ‘ laisser faire’ to refer to a group of doctrines which justified policy (or lack of it) towards a limited range of economic relationships, especially in foreign trade and labour relationships. This element in middle class ideology does not usefully contribute to an explanation of the use of voluntary societies in preference to the state; see also Dicey, A. V., Lectures on the relationship between law and public opinion (1905), pp. 62–209;Google ScholarTaylor, A. J., Laisser faire and state intervention in nineteenth century Britain (Economic History Society, 1972), pp. 32–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

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87 My thanks to Professor M. Anderson, Dr R. Davidson, Dr N. T. Phillipson and Professor T. C. Smout for valuable comments on an earlier version of this paper, and to those who contributed to discussion when the ideas in this article were first put forward at the Urban History Conference in Leicester in 1973.