William Godwin, Romantic-Era Historiography and the Political Cultures of Infancy

Abstract

John-Erik Hansson considers the three educational histories for children written by the English radical philosopher and political theorist William Godwin under the pseudonym Edward Baldwin: History of England (1806), History of Rome (1809) and History of Greece (1822). Hansson shows how these histories participate in the ongoing debate in the Romantic period about the uses of Classical and modern history in the education of children and he traces the connections between them and the political positions outlined in Godwin’s influential and controversial Enquiry Concerning Political Justice (1793). Taken as a whole, Hansson argues, Godwin’s histories demonstrate not only the extent to which writing for children during the Romantic period mirrored the political concerns of works aimed at adult readers, but also articulate a connection between the education of children in history and the promotion of a progressive, political agenda.