As ever I am deeply grateful to the Master and Fellows of St John’s College, Cambridge, for providing conditions under which it is still possible to combine research with the increasing demands of a full-time academic appointment. Most of the actual writing of this book took place in British Columbia, at what I have come to regard as the Bowen Island Research Centre, and my special debt to its director is recognized in the dedication of this book. The whole manuscript was read in draft by my general editor, David Cannadine, and by Stefan Collini, Ewen Green, John Thompson and Maria Tippett; sections were read by Gillian Sutherland and Simon Szreter. All of them made useful suggestions which have led to the improvement of the final text. I should also like to thank all who helped me at Penguin, led by Peter Carson. But errors may remain; and I must now rely upon solicitous readers and reviewers to alert me to their existence.
Peter Clarke, 1996
Second edition: A number of corrections have accordingly been inserted. The new material, notably chapter 12, was written while I was Master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge, whose Fellows I thank for their forbearance. More specifically, I thank those who vetted my text: my general editor, David Cannadine; my editor at Penguin, Simon Winder; my faithful critics, Stefan Collini and John Thompson; and Maria Tippett, a cultural historian whose dedication is affirmed by much more than the inscription at the front of this book.
Peter Clarke, January 2004