The Kent Petition of 1701 and the discussion on the relationship between Parliament and voters in English journalism of the early XVIII century.

Abstract

The authors study the discussion on the relationship between parliament and voters in the English journalism of the beginning of the XVIII century. The authors consider one of the attempts of English voters to influence the policy of the already elected parliament – the "Kent Petition" of 1701, the authors of which sought to get the English Parliament to finance military preparations. The petition led to a large-scale discussion on the relationship between parliament and voters, the very ability of the latter to influence the activities of a representative body outside the election procedure. The arguments of the participants in this dispute are the focus of this article. Based on a wide range of sources, it is concluded that the problem of the relationship between parliament and voters became particularly relevant after the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688-1689, when the practice of regular convocation of parliament was established. The article shows that the discussion was conducted by supporters of early English "parties" - groups of Whigs and Tories. If the Whigs defended the right of voters to influence the policy of parliamentarians, the Tories considered such a practice risky and dangerous. The authors note the influence of the concepts of political thought that were widespread at that time on the positions of the parties: for example, the Whigs used the idea of a "social contract", while the Tories relied in their writings on the principle of "balance" between the elements of the English political system.