The Language of Whiggism: Liberty and Patriotism, 1802-1830

The early years of the nineteenth century saw unprecedented press activity, due in large part to Napoleon and protracted international war. It was against this background that the Edinburgh Review was launched in 1802. The Review became the mouthpiece of the new Whig government of 1806 (the first since 1784). Chittick highlights the connections between the Whig party and ideological Whiggism and addresses the question of how wartime politics affected contemporary literary language. Just as the Civil War transformed seventeenth-century English prose, so the Napoleonic period made the matter of language crucial, as educated and uneducated alike fought over the definitions of libel, loyalty and freedom. The challenge was to find a safe language when for reasons of security the government demanded repression. 'Whiggism' was the safe language of liberty, developed through periodical publishing.