Profile Major Works Resources

Edmund Burke, 1729-1797

Portrait of Burke

Irish Enlightenment social and political philosopher and British statesman. 

Although reared in the Enlightenment era, Burke was a severe critic of rationalist theories of "natural law" and social contract.  Like David Hume, Burke believed that political and social organization evolved organically over history from a variety of political, cultural and social circumstances.  In Burke's view, current society is a robust organism that emerged piecemeal and slowly over history.  For this reason, Burke never trusted abstract "grand plans" for radical political, economic and/or social reorganization of society.  This has led him to be celebrated as the father of Conservatism. 

However, Burke wasn't exactly an apologist of the current order either.  Tyrannical kings and parliaments, no less than tyrannical mobs, were an anathema to Burke.  It is for this reason that he defended the American Revolution (since, in his view, they were merely "reclaiming" their traditional rights as freeborn Englishmen) and condemned the French Revolution (which, in his view, was based on a rationalist experiment).

Burke was trained as a lawyer at Trinity College, Dublin and thereafter moved to London.  In 1759, he became a private secretary to William Hamilton and then, in 1765, to Charles Wentworth, Marquis of Rockingham, the Whig prime minister.  Burke was himself elected to the House of Commons in 1765.  After the fall of the Whigs in 1766, Burke sat in opposition to the Tories in parliament.

Burke took up several political causes, both in Parliament and in the press.  The first was the Wilkes crisis and the relationship between Crown and Parliament (1769, 1770) and then against the British colonial policy in America (1774, 1775).  He also raised his voice for the emancipation of Catholics, the removal of trade barriers with Ireland, the abolition of the slave trade and slavery and against the privileges and excesses of the rule of the East India Company in India (and later instigating the impeachment of Warren Hastings, governor general of India).  Some of his political positions (e.g. on Catholics) were not very popular and he would lose his parliamentary seat repeatedly as a result (always he would return with another seat). In 1771 Burke was chosen by the New York assembly as their agent in London.  Burke retired from Parliament in 1794.

Burke's impact on economics was interesting.  In the modern era, his ideas about the unplanned, historical evolution of political and social norms is echoed most clearly in the later works of Friedrich Hayek and the Austrian School.  But his greatest influence was on social commentators like Thomas Carlyle and John Ruskin, who invoked Burke's arguments to condemn the destructive rise of capitalist industrialism.  The Carlyle-Ruskin assault on the  "whiggery" of economists was already presaged in Burke's famous passage from his 1791 Reflections upon the execution of Marie Antoinette: 

But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded, and the glory of Europe is extinguished forever.  (1790: p.113)

Edmund Burke is famously celebrated in William Butler Yeats's poem "The Seven Sages".

 

  

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Major Works of Edmund Burke

  • [Anon] A Vindication of Natural Society: Or, a view of the miseries and evils arising to mankind from every species of artificial society, in a letter to Lord **** by a late noble writer, 1756 [bk] [1780, 3rd ed], [Works, ed.]
  • Discourse on Taste [bart] [Works, ed.]
  • [Anon] A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful, with an introductory discourse concerning taste, 1756 (enlarged 1757)  [1759, 2nd ed.], [1761 3rd ed], [1764 4th ed.] [1767 5th ed.], [1773 7th ed.], [1776 8th ed.], [1787 new ed] [1821 ed], [Works ed.]
  • [Anon] An Account of the European Settlements in America, 1757 [1758 2nd ed., v.1] [1760 3rd ed., v.1, v.2] [1765, 4th ed. v.1, v.2], [1770 5th ed., v.1, v.2]
  • An Essay towards the Abridgement of the English History, 1757 [Works ed]
  • [Anon] A Short Account of the Late Short Administration, 1766 [Works ed]
  • [Anon] Observations on a late publication, intitled 'the Present State of the Nation', 1769  [3rd ed. Observations on a Late State of the Nation] [Works ed.]
  • [Anon] Thoughts on the Cause of the Present Discontents, 1770 [bk] [1784 6th ed] [Works ed.]
  • Speech of Mr. Edmund Burke, Esq., on American Taxation, April 19, 1774, 1774 [1775 ed., bk,. bk] [Works ed.]
  • Mr. Edmund Burkes' Speeches at his Arrival at Bristol and at the Conclusion of the Poll, 1774 [1775 ed] [Works ed.]
  • Speech of Mr. Edmund Burke, Esq., on moving his Resolutions for Conciliation with the Colonies, March 22, 1775, 1775 [bk] [txt] [Works, ed]
  • Letter from Mr. Burke to John Farr and John Harris, Esqrs., Sheriffs of the City of Bristol, on the Affairs of America, 1777 [bk] [Works ed]
  • Two Letters from Mr. Burke to Gentlemen in the City of Bristol, on the bills depending in parliament relative to the trade of Ireland, 1778 [bk] [Works ed]
  • Speech of Edmund Burke, Esq. Member of Parliament for the city of Bristol, on presenting to the House of Commons (on the 11th of February, 1780) a plan for the better security of the Independence of Parliament, and the oeconomical reformation of the civil and other establishments, 1780 [bk] [Works, ed.]
  • [Anon] A Letter from a Gentleman in the English House of Commons: In Vindication of His Conduct, with Regard to the Affairs of Ireland,  1780 [bk]
  • A Speech of Edmund Burke, Esq. at the Guildhall, in Bristol, previous to the late election in that city upon certain points relative to his parliamentary conduct, 1780 [bk]  [Works, ed.] ("Speech to the Electors of Bristol")
  • Speech at Bristol on Declining the Poll, September 9, 1780, 1780 [Remembrancer, 1780: p247][Works ed.]
  • "A Letter to a Peer of Ireland on the Penal Laws Against Irish Catholics, previous to the late repeal of a part thereof in the sessions of the Irish Parliament held A.D. 1782", 1781 [Portfolio, 1808: p.281 says 1791] [Works ed]
  • Mr. Burke's speech, on the 1st December 1783, upon the question for the Speaker's leaving the chair, in order for the House to resolve itself into a committee on Mr. Fox's East India Bill, 1783 [1784 bk] [Works ed]
  • A Representation to His Majesty, moved in the House of Commons, by the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, and seconded by the Right Honourable William Windham, on Monday, June 14, 1784, and Negatived, 1784. [bk] [Works ed.]
  • Mr. Burke's Speech on the motion made for papers relative to the directions for charging the Nabob of Arcot's private debts to Europeans, on the revenues of the Carnatic. February 28th, 1785. 1785 [bk] [Works ed]
  • Substance of the Speech of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, in the Debate on the Army Estimates, in the House of Commons, on Tuesday, the 9th Day of February, 1790, comprehending a discussion of the present situation of affairs in France. 1790 [bk], [Works ed]
  • Reflections on the Revolution in France, and on the proceedings in certain Societies in London relative to that event: in a letter intended to have been sent to a gentleman in Paris, 1790 [bk], [Works ed.]
  • A Letter from Mr. Burke, to a Member of the National Assembly: in answer to some objections to his book on French affairs, 1791 [bk], [Works ed]
  • An Appeal from the New to the Old Whigs, in consequence of some late discussions in parliament,relative to the reflections on the French Revolution, 1791 [bk], [Works ed]
  • A Letter from the Right Hon. Edmund Burke, M.P. in the Kingdom of Great Britain, to Sir Hercules Langrishe, Bart. M.P.: On the subject of Roman Catholics of Ireland, and the propriety of admitting them to the elective franchise, consistently with the principles of the constitution as established at the revolution, 1792 [bk]  [Works ed]
  • "Preface", 1794, in J.P. Brissot to his Constituents [bk] [Works ed]
  • "Thoughts and Details on Scarcity, originally presented to the Right Hon. William Pitt, in the month of November 1795" (unpub, first pub 1802 Works ed.) [Works ed]
  • A Letter from the Right Hon. Edmund Burke to a Noble Lord on the attacks made upon him and his pension, in the House of Lords, by the Duke of Bedford and the Earl of Lauderdale, early in the present session of parliament, 1796 [bk] [Works ed.] [bart]
  • Two Letters Addressed to a Member of the Present Parliament: On the Proposals for Peace with the Regicide Directory of France, 1796 [bk]  [Letters I & II in Works ed.] (also called Thoughts on the Prospect of a Regicide Peace, 1796,  bk)
  • (Posthumous)  A Third Letter to a Member of the Present Parliament: On the Proposals for Peace with the Regicide Directory of France, 1797 [bk] [Letter III in Works ed.]
  • (Posthumous) Three Memorials on French Affairs, written in the years 1791, 1792 and 1793, 1797 [bk] [Works ed]
    • "Hints for a Memorial to be delivered to Monsieur de M.M." (written early 1791) [p.*1] [Works ed]
    • "Thoughts on French Affairs" (written December 1791)  [p.1] [Works ed]
    • "Heads of Consideration on the present State of Affairs" (written November 1792)  [p.83] [Works ed]
    • "Remarks on the Policy of the Allies with respect to France" (begun in October 1793) [p.113] [Works ed]
    • "Appendix" [p.201] [Works ed]
  • (Posthumous) A Letter from the Rt. Honourable Edmund Burke to His Grace the Duke of Portland, on the conduct of the minority in parliament, containing fifty-four articles of impeachment against the Rt. Hon. C.J. Fox, from the original copy in the possession of the noble Duke. 1797, (written 1793) [bk]
    • [Works ed.] (without opening letter)
  • (Posthumous) Two Letters on the Conduct of Our Domestick Parties, with regard to French Politicks: including observations on the conduct of the Minority, in the session of 1793, 1797 [bk] [Works ed]
    • Includes 1793 letter to Duke of Portland (with opening letter) (p.1)
    • "Letter to William Elliot, Esq. occasion by the account given in a newspaper of the speech made in the House of Lords by the *** of ******", in the debate concerning Lord Fitzwilliam," (written 1795) (p.95) [Works ed]
  • Works of the Right Hon. Edmund Burke 
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Resources on Edmund Burke

 

 
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