Ireland in the Intellectual Legacy of Edmund Burke (using “Abridgment of English History”)

Abstract. An analysis of a little-known work by the Anglo-Irish conservative politician Edmund Burke, “Abridgment of English History”, is offered. This is one of his earliest works remains virtually unknown in both domestic and foreign historiography, while it gives a clear idea of the historical views of this political thinker. The author focuses on E. Burke’s interpretation of the role and place of his motherland, Ireland, in the context of British history and concludes that E. Burke is deeply personally involved in the problems of Anglo-Irish relations. Historical events become for the publicist an argument for the construction of British policy in the present. As shown in the article despite the fact that Burke advocated the liberalization of British policy in Ireland, he sees no other alternatives for the “Emerald Isle” except the coexistence of Ireland and England within one political system and advocates the imperial project of Britain.

Keywords: Edmund Burke, conservatism, history of 18th century Ireland, “Abridgment of English history”, the British Empire.