The Forging of the Modern State ― Early Industrial Britain 1783-1870

In this classic history of Britain, Eric Evans surveys a period in which Britain was transformed into the world’s first industrial nation, while the foundations of the largest empire the world had seen were also being securely laid.

This was an era of unprecedented political crisis, economic opportunity and social upheaval unparalleled in Britain, yet one during which transformation was achieved without revolution. The unique and potent combination of transition and transformation is a major theme of this book. The book ranges across key political, diplomatic, social, cultural, economic and religious themes and conveys the drama of hectic change which stopped short of political revolution. Britain was still ruled by wealthy landowners in 1870 as it had been in 1783, but the world over which they presided had been transformed utterly. It had become an urban, industrial and commercial society, but this was a change achieved without revolution.

This fourth edition, coming more than fifteen years after the previous edition, has been completely revised and updated in the light of recent research. It also incorporates increased engagement with key themes such as gender, personal and national identity and the relationship between Britain and its burgeoning empire. Containing illustrations, maps, an expanded Framework of Events, and an extensive Compendium of Information on topics such as population statistics, significant legislation and cabinet lists, it is essential reading for all students of this transformative period in British history.

Eric J. Evans is Emeritus Professor of Modern History at Lancaster University. He is the author of a number of seminal works on the political and social history of eighteenth and nineteenth-century Britain.