Lord Acton

Uppmaningen att lära av historien är välbekant. Men vad betyder det egentligen? Förespråkarna för tillämpad historia menar att historiska studier kan användas praktiskt och ge vägledning för framtiden. Beslutsfattare och politiker kan få perspektiv, hitta ledtrådar till vart en utveckling kan leda och bedöma vad ett agerande kan få för konsekvenser. Men den tillämpade historiens ökade popularitet skymmer det faktum att historiker ända sedan antikens Grekland har analyserat de stora politiska, ekonomiska och militära frågorna med liknande perspektiv och tankesätt. Varje generation historiker har utvecklat sin forskning på basis av tidigare idéer och kunskap med målet att förstå sin samtid genom att studera det förflutna. Klassiker inom tillämpad historia tar ett stort och ambitiöst grepp om hur historisk kunskap skapas, lärs ut och används under olika epoker. I boken presenteras ett brett urval av texter från till exempel Niccolò Machiavelli, E. H. Carr, Ernest May och Margaret MacMillan, som tillsammans skapar både överblick och insikt i detta ständigt aktuella ämne. Varje text introduceras och placeras i sitt historiska sammanhang av en nu verksam historiker.

Letters of Lord Acton to Mary, Daughter of the Right Hon. W. E. Gladstone has been regarded as significant work throughout human history, and in order to ensure that this work is never lost, we have taken steps to ensure its preservation by republishing this book in a contemporary format for both current and future generations. This entire book has been retyped, redesigned, and reformatted. Since these books are not made from scanned copies, the text is readable and clear.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

This book has been considered by academicians and scholars of great significance and value to literature. This forms a part of the knowledge base for future generations. So that the book is never forgotten we have represented this book in a print format as the same form as it was originally first published. Hence any marks or annotations seen are left intentionally to preserve its true nature.

Alors que la sentence Le pouvoir tend a corrompre, le pouvoir absolu corrompt absolument est universellement connue, son auteur, Lord Acton (1834-1902), l'est beaucoup moins. A telle enseigne qu'aucune des oeuvres de ce grand historien catholique anglais, tres proche ami et inspirateur du Premier Ministre liberal progressiste William Gladstone, n'etait jusqu'a present disponible en francais. C'est desormais chose faite avec cette traduction inedite de trois conferences portant successivement sur le travail de l'historien, l'histoire de la liberte dans l'Antiquite puis dans le christianisme - ou de nombreux passages illustrent le theme d'une fatale tendance a la corruption du pouvoir. Outre cette critique liberale du pouvoir ( Il n'y a pas plus de rapport entre la liberte et le pouvoir qu'entre l'eternite et le temps ), l'interet majeur de ces textes est d'exposer une robuste et singuliere philosophie de l'histoire trouvant son sens dans un progres continu quoique tourmente du monde vers toujours plus de liberte. Laquelle, pour le professeur d'histoire contemporaine a Cambridge que fut Lord Acton est en elle-meme l'objectif le plus noble qui soit .