War and British Society 1688-1815

Discusses the considerable influence of war on the development of Britain's society and economy in the 'long eighteenth century'.

Drawing on a large volume of research, this 1998 book considers sustained warfare as a powerful agent of change which transformed a wide range of institutions, structures, and processes in Britain between 1688 and 1815, a period when Britain was at war for much of the time. Stressing the positive as well as the negative, and the long term as well as the short term, the effects of war are brought to bear upon questions of central importance in the study of eighteenth-century British history. How effectively did the emerging state cope with the financial and logistical demands of war? How severe were the economic and social strains imposed upon the population at large, and how did they respond to the call to arms? What effect did war have upon the industrialising economy? A balanced overview is presented of Britain as a nation at war during an important phase of her development as an imperial, industrial and military power.

Acknowledgements; 1. Introduction; 2. Eighteenth-century warfare: the British experience; 3. Taking the strain: state and society; 4. A nation in arms: the armed forces and British society; 5. The wartime economy; Afterword; Bibliography; Index.

War exerted a considerable influence on the development of Britain's society and economy between 1688 and 1815. This 1998 book presents a balanced overview of Britain as a nation at war and discusses the financial and logistical effects of war on an industrialising economy as well as the social and economic strains imposed on the population at large during the 'age of war'.