Ashford, Nigel (1983) The Conservative Party and European integration, 1945-1975. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Preview

PDF WRAP_THESIS_Ashford_1983.pdf - Submitted Version - Requires a PDF viewer. Download (17Mb)

Request Changes to record.

Abstract

Much of the study of the British Conservative Party has been concerned
with the power of the Party Leader. Two conflicting interpretations
have been presented: the monolithic view that power lies essentially
in the hands of the Leader, and the pluralist view that power is
widely dispersed within the party. This dissertation examines the
validity of these interpretations with regard to the question of
Britain's attitude to European integration from 1945 to 1975, an
issue which has traditionally been seen to support the monolithic
view. The primary method of investigation in this study has been
the examination of primary sources in the archives of the Conservative
Party and other relevant bodies, supported by interviews with
participants.
The Introduction presents the two interpretations and
demonstrates that the monolithic view has been widely presented as
the correct one to explain the party's position on European integration.
Chapter One reviews the literature on the distribution of power within
the Conservative Party. Within the framework of the various elements
that make up the party, the issue is examined chronologically.
Chapter Two examines 1945 to 1951; Chapter Three, 1951 to 1960;
Chapter Four, 1961 to 1963; Chapter Five, 1963 to 1970; Chapter 6,
1970 to 1972; and Chapter Seven, 1973-1975. The final chapter argues
that the electoral orientation of the Conservative Party leads to a
pluralist distribution of power, and that the study of the European
issue supports that interpretation. This thesis substantially
undermines an important source of support for the monolithic
interpretation and provides additional support for the pluralist view
of the distribution of power within the Conservative Party.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Subjects:	J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe) > JN101 Great Britain
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Conservative Party (Great Britain) -- History -- 20th century, Political leadership -- Great Britain, Great Britain -- Foreign relations -- Europe, Power (Social sciences)
Official Date:	February 1983
Dates:	Date Event February 1983 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of Politics and International Studies
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Paterson, William E.
Extent:	vi, 416 leaves
Language:	eng

Request changes or add full text files to a record

Repository staff actions (login required)

View Item

Downloads