The historical resonances of the concept of 'Britain' for the communities of the Atlantic Archipelago in the early modern period are explored here in terms of the ideological demands made upon it. Various and competing concepts of Britishness are examined, from the Henrician legislation which united Wales with England and which created the kingdom of Ireland, to the Act of Union of the realms of England and Scotland. The chequered history of the consciousness of Britain as a polity which embraced the united kingdoms is discussed in relation to the distinctive national identities of the constituent countries, and the question of the impact of 'Britain' on English policy-making under the Tudor, Stuart and the first Hanoverian monarchs is addressed. The puzzling resistance of the Irish to assimilation in contrast to the docility of the Welsh and - eventually - of the Scots is also explored.

This resource gives students and teachers a greater understanding of identity, membership, citizenship, and belonging in the uk. In a time when debates about national identity and integration have taken on increased urgency, Facing History and Ourselves introduces, "Identity and Belonging in a Changing Great Britain". It reveals experiences of newcomers and the dilemmas surrounding immigration--from the individual to the collective--through memoirs, journalistic accounts, and interviews. "Identity and Belonging in a Changing Great Britain" is a critical and relevant resource for British educators in schools and other organizations that are addressing the duty to promote community cohesion. This is also an important resource for political science, sociology, education and religious studies courses at the university level. Individual sections contain footnotes. [Funding for this paper was provided by the Deutsche Bank.].

The second edition of this successful book analyses contemporary British identity from the various and changing ways. Right up to date, it covers such phenomena as Posh and Becks, Big Brother, the Millenium Dome and Harry Potter.

Scholars have become increasingly interested in how modern national consciousness comes into being through fictional narratives. Literature is of particular importance to this process, for it is responsible for tracing the nations evolution through glorious tales of its history. In nineteenth-century Britain, the legends of King Arthur and Robin Hood played an important role in construction of contemporary national identity. These two legends provide excellent windows through which to view British culture, because they provide very different perspectives. King Arthur and Robin Hood have traditionally been diametrically opposed in terms of their ideological orientation. The former is a king, a man at the pinnacle of the social and political hierarchy, whereas the latter is an outlaw, and is therefore completely outside conventional hierarchical structures. The fact that two such different figures could simultaneously function as British national heroes suggests that nineteenth-century British nationalism did not represent a single set of values and ideas, but rather that it was forced to assimilate a variety of competing points of view.

Udo Thiel presents a critical evaluation of the understanding of self-consciousness and personal identity in early modern philosophy. He explores over a century of European philosophical debate from Descartes to Hume, and argues that our interest in human subjectivity remains strongly influenced by the conceptual framework of early modern thought.

What does it mean to say you're English, Scottish, British? Does it matter much to people? Has devolution and constitutional change made a difference to national identity? Does the future of the UK depend on whether or not people think they are British? Social and political scientists answer these questions vital to the future of the British state.

During the past 100 years, British citizens' shared sense of identity has been shaped and reshaped by a combination of geo-political developments, demographic and migration trends, racial and cultural conflict and the advent of English language globalisation. This book traces the evolution of our national identity.

The term ‘conversation’ is one of today’s jargon terms. This book explores in depth what conversation means in national terms. Its premise is that to be English is to participate in a conversation about the country’s history, politics, culture and society. The conversation changes, of course, but there is also continuity which illustrates a distinct tradition. It is a conversation, the book argues, which requires the plural notion of these Englands rather than the singularity of this England. Englishness, then, is the tone, register and idiom of it subject matters, its anxieties and certainties, differences and commonalities. The book explores the English conversation through historical, political, literary and popular voices and tries to identify the character of contemporary Englishness.

The English stand now in need of a new sense of home and belonging - a reassessment of who they are. This is a history of who they were, written from the perspective of the twenty-first century. It begins by considering how the English state identified an English nation which, from very early days, seems to have seen itself as not simply the creature of state or king. It considers also how in modern times the English nation survived shattering revolutions in technology, urban living, and global conflict, while at the same time retaining a softer, more human vision of themselves as a people in touch with their nature and their land. They claimed that there was more to living in England than work and wages, there was more to running a vast empire than just exploiting it. For all its faults and inequalities, they identified with their state. For all their shortcomings they were confident of their place in history. As little as forty years ago, these ideas were not much in doubt. Though vague and often contradictory, they held together as the English people held together -as a whole. Indeed, 'Englishness' was hardly recognized as a subject for analysis, except perhaps in a rather ironic and self-mocking vein. But now 'the national question' is back and history is at the top of the agenda. From a rich store of historical memory and possibility, Robert Colls connects the identity of England in the past with the changing and uncertain identity of England today.

Governing England examines the state of England's governance, identity and relationship with the other nations of the UK. It brings together academic experts on constitutional change, territorial politics, nationalism, political parties, public opinion, and local government both to explain thecurrent place of England within a changing United Kingdom, and to consider how the "English constitution" is likely to develop over the coming years.At a time when questions of territory and identity have grown increasingly politicised, Governing England offers a deeper academic analysis of how England and Englishness are changing. The central questions it addresses are whether, why, and with what consequences there has been a disentangling ofEngland from Britain within the institutions of the UK state, and of Englishness from Britishness at the level of culture and national identity.This volume includes competing interpretations of what has changed in terms of English nationhood.