The Break-Up of Britain
The classic text, with a new introduction by Anthony Barnett

In this classic text, first published in 1977, Tom Nairn memorably depicts the “slow foundering” of the United Kingdom on the rocks of constitutional anachronism, its fall from empire and the gathering force of civic nationalism. Rich in comparisons between the nationalisms of the British Isles and those of the wider world, The Break-Up of Britain concludes by reflecting on the Janus-faced nature of national identity. Postscripts from the Thatcher and New Labour years trace the political strategies whose upshot accelerated the demise of a British order they were intended to serve.

As a second Scottish independence referendum beckons, a new introduction by openDemocracy’s Anthony Barnett underlines the book’s enduring relevance.
1013060435
The Break-Up of Britain
The classic text, with a new introduction by Anthony Barnett

In this classic text, first published in 1977, Tom Nairn memorably depicts the “slow foundering” of the United Kingdom on the rocks of constitutional anachronism, its fall from empire and the gathering force of civic nationalism. Rich in comparisons between the nationalisms of the British Isles and those of the wider world, The Break-Up of Britain concludes by reflecting on the Janus-faced nature of national identity. Postscripts from the Thatcher and New Labour years trace the political strategies whose upshot accelerated the demise of a British order they were intended to serve.

As a second Scottish independence referendum beckons, a new introduction by openDemocracy’s Anthony Barnett underlines the book’s enduring relevance.
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The Break-Up of Britain

The Break-Up of Britain

The Break-Up of Britain

The Break-Up of Britain

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Overview

The classic text, with a new introduction by Anthony Barnett

In this classic text, first published in 1977, Tom Nairn memorably depicts the “slow foundering” of the United Kingdom on the rocks of constitutional anachronism, its fall from empire and the gathering force of civic nationalism. Rich in comparisons between the nationalisms of the British Isles and those of the wider world, The Break-Up of Britain concludes by reflecting on the Janus-faced nature of national identity. Postscripts from the Thatcher and New Labour years trace the political strategies whose upshot accelerated the demise of a British order they were intended to serve.

As a second Scottish independence referendum beckons, a new introduction by openDemocracy’s Anthony Barnett underlines the book’s enduring relevance.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781781683200
Publisher: Verso Books
Publication date: 06/22/2021
Pages: 464
Sales rank: 622,356
Product dimensions: 5.10(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Tom Nairn (1932–2023) was one of the UK’s most gifted left-wing thinkers and a towering radical imagination. His books included The Break-Up of Britain, The Enchanted Glass: Britain and Its Monarchy and The Left Against Europe?

Table of Contents

Introduction: 'Tom Nairn Is the One' Anthony Burnett ix

1 The Twilight of the British State 1

2 Scotland and Europe 82

3 Old and New Scottish Nationalism 116

4 Culture and Politics in Wales 186

5 Northern Ireland: Relic or Portent? 206

6 English Nationalism: the Case of Enoch Powell 246

7 The English Enigma 281

8 Supra-Nationalism and Europe 296

9 The Modern Janus 319

Postscript 1981: Into Political Emergency 355

Postscript 2003: 21st-century Hindsight 395

Acknowledgements 416

Index 420

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