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Introduction: The Transformation of Petitioning in the Long Nineteenth Century (1780-1914)

Miller, Henry

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Abstract

This introductory essay, firstly, offers a comparative, historical perspective on the transformation of petitioning into a vehicle for mass popular politics across North America and Western Europe during the “long” nineteenth century (1780–1914). While petitions were well established as an instrument of state in many early modern states, from the late eighteenth century a new type of mass, public, collective petitioning, based on established or invoked rights, emerged on an unprecedented scale in many countries. Mass petitioning underpinned the nascent repertoires of collective action pioneered by social movements. At the same time, the reception of petitions was institutionalized by political authorities, particularly legislatures elected under limited suffrage, as a potential source of legitimation. Secondly, the introduction suggests why people petitioned, and continued to petition, when their campaigns were often unsuccessful in achieving immediate results. The answer lies in the manifold advantages of petitioning in enabling political organization, mobilization, identity formation, citizenship, political change, and the forming of networks with elite political actors. By shaping an emerging field examining petitioning and petitions, raising awareness of petitions as sources and the methodologies to exploit them, and addressing broad questions of interest to historians and social scientists, this special issue hopes to stimulate further research and contribute to a rich dialogue in the years to come.

Citation

Miller, H. (2019). Introduction: The Transformation of Petitioning in the Long Nineteenth Century (1780-1914). Social Science History, 43(3), 409-429. https://doi.org/10.1017/ssh.2019.24

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jun 20, 2018
Online Publication Date Jul 22, 2019
Publication Date Sep 30, 2019
Deposit Date Jun 20, 2018
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Social Science History
Print ISSN 0145-5532
Electronic ISSN 1527-8034
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 43
Issue 3
Pages 409-429
DOI https://doi.org/10.1017/ssh.2019.24

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Copyright Statement
This article has been accepted for publication and will appear in a revised form in Social Science History https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/social-science-history. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution, re-sale or use in derivative works. © © Social Science History Association, 2018




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