1

A Time Like the Present

By Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens set his historical novel A Tale of Two Cities (1859) in the French Revolution seventy years before, but it was far from the dead past to him.

2

Desperate Measures

By Sir Philip Francis

Sir Philip Francis told the House of Commons that it must not let ministers manufacture crises as an excuse for grabbing more power.

3

A Rush to Judgment

By Samuel Smiles

As a young man, surveyor Thomas Telford was a red-hot political activist who yearned for revolution, but admittedly he had read just one book on the matter.

4

This Dreadful Innovation

By Edmund Burke

Edmund Burke explained to the Duke of Bedford that in politics there is very great difference between change and reform.

5

The Little Dog of Castiglione

By Helen Maria Williams

Nothing seemed likely to stop Napoleon Bonaparte from conquering Europe, but one little fellow slowed him up a bit.

6

My Standard of a Statesman

By Edmund Burke

Edmund Burke expressed his frustration at the arrogance of politicians who have no regard for our Constitutional heritage.