Peter D. Clarke

The Rise and Fall of Thatcherism

The ‘battle of the books’ conducted in memoirs of the Thatcher government can yield valuable historical insights. ‘Doctrinal Thatcherism’ is examined, especially the proclaimed filiation of the Medium Term Financial Strategy from Friedmanite monetarism. This is shown to be somewhat uncertain either in theory or in practice. Yet the ability of Thatcherism to withstand such frailties proved it ideologically robust in both objectives and methods. If its appeal was crucially dependent on the personality of Thatcher herself, her fall was likewise irreducibly personal, as illustrated in her handling of the poll tax and of her relations with key colleagues.

'Canterbury as the new Rome: Dispensations and Henry VIII's reformation'

An important way in which the late medieval papacy exercised its authority over the English Church was by granting dispensations, special graces that allowed exceptions to canon law in certain instances, notably permitting marriages between close kin. In 1533 the Dispensations Act forbade Henry VIIIs subjects to petition the papacy for favours. But dispensations did not disappear after the break with Rome. The archbishop of Canterburys Faculty Office continued to issue almost all those previously available from Rome. This article explores the transition to this new office, noting how Cardinal Wolseys legatine activity in the 1520s prepared the way.