Book Review - The History of Liberty

"Liberty is not a means to a higher political end. 

It is itself the highest political end." - Lord Acton

The famous English and American historian Lord Acton (1834-1902) – who is best remembered for his maxim “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”[1] – spent much of his professional life working on a single book, a comprehensive history of liberty. However, his strict standards of scholarship (refusing to use secondary accounts) got the better of him. Since the history he examined spanned over 2,500 years, covered many different countries, cultures, and religions and dealt with everything from the history philosophy to the history of political movements, it became virtually impossible for any one person to complete. Consequently, Acton’s masterpiece was never finished, and his history of liberty, the work of a lifetime, became known as “the greatest book never written.”[2]

The book opens with Acton’s famous 1877 lectures on the “History of Freedom in Antiquity” and “History of Freedom in Christianity.” Acton argued that Christian civilization emphasized the dignity of the individual person and their freedom in a greater degree than did Greece or Rome. In his view, the Church was seen as a force able to limit the power of the state; and “it is only by abridging the authority of states that the liberty of churches can be assured.”[3] According to Acton, we cannot understand the history of Western civilization unless we examine the conflict that exists between liberty and power. The idea of liberty, according to Acton, is based upon unity. For him, something unique existed in Western civilization, the individual was granted greater status than any other group (such as the state or society). Though it is granted that this took many centuries to develop (and the cost of many lives), the emphasis of Western civilization on the importance of the individual’s conscience (especially in regards to religious matters) was something unique; something which could overcome the abuses of power.[4]

No obstacle has been so constant, or so difficult to overcome, as uncertainty and confusion touching the nature of true liberty. If hostile interests have wrought much injury, false ideas have wrought still more; and its advance is recorded in the increase of knowledge, as much as in the improvement of laws. The history of institutions is often a history of deception and illusions; for their virtue depends on the ideas that produce and on the spirit that preserves them, and the form may remain unaltered when the substance has passed away.[5]

Essentially, Acton’s “History of Liberty” stresses the point that political institutions alone cannot be relied upon to preserve freedom. This is because such institutions have no real substance apart from the ideas that people have about them. This liberty of ideas is what makes up history. Liberty (which is the ultimate focus of Acton's writing) is something that I personally haven't realized the importance of until reading this book. What liberty is, how it comes about, and why we should pursue it are all questions that Acton engages in his lectures. Writing specifically in reference to the American Democracy, this book was extremely insightful into the struggles and challenges that our own political system faces. True liberty was at the heart of the founding of the U.S., and true liberty must be maintained throughout its existence.

Acton goes on to point out that a political institution, such as the American presidency, may have similar characteristics over time, but the reality of the power is often far different than what it says on paper. Thus, the power enjoyed by the first American presidents differs greatly from that of our modern presidents. Christopher Clausen points this out in his article that examines Acton’s writings. Clausen shows how the president of Acton’s day was expected to make tens of thousands of changes upon being elected, while only fifty years earlier John Quincy Adams dismissed only two men.[6]

Here, Lord Acton was calling attention to the illusion that political institutions can fabricate. As long as these institutions appear to be in good working order, then it is frequently assumed that our freedom is secure and that we don’t need worry about the growth of a dictator. Yet, even a political institution that originally served the interests of liberty can devolve into one bent upon power. This is what Acton meant when he said that “the history of institutions is often a history of deception and illusions.”[7]

Acton’s other claim that the “virtue [of institutions] depends on the ideas that produce and on the spirit that preserves them,”[8] illustrates his belief in the crucial role of ideas in establishing a free society. Regardless of how corrupt political institutions become and how power-driven they act it is still possible, according to Acton, to restore their original spirit of liberty with new ideas. If institutions can be corrupted with bad ideas, they can also be reinvigorated with good ideas.[9]

I would recommend this book to those seeking to understand the nature of liberty and how the idea of freedom shaped and formed our own American history as well as the history of the entire world. Admittedly dense to read and follow, this book does offer many useful insights into the tension that exists between power and liberty. “The History of Freedom” is not as widely available as one would expect, but it can be ordered online through the Acton Institute for around $17. A link is posted at the bottom of the page.

When Acton wrote that “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” he spoke to both past and future generations of people. How often has this phrase been apropriately descriptive of contemporary affairs! In an era when the state intrudes ever more increasingly into the domain of the personal and the private, Acton’s insight into the meaning of human liberty and the dynamics which threaten its promise and exercise, remains important for our own day.

[1] Online Library of Liberty, “Acton-Creighton Correspondence (1887),” Liberty Fund Inc., 2004, at http://oll.libertyfund.org/quote/214.
[2] Clausen, Christopher “Lord Acton and the Lost Cause,” American Scholar, (Winter 2000), Vol. 69 Issue 1, 3.
[3] Acton, John “The History of Freedom,” The Acton Institute, (Grand Rapids, 1993), 52.
[4] Zagorin, Perez “Lord Acton’s Ordeal: The Historian and Moral Judgment,” Virginia Quarterly Review. Winter98, Vol. 74 Issue 1, 9.
[5] Acton, John “The History of Freedom,” 2.
[6] Clausen, Christopher “Lord Acton and the Lost Cause,” 5.
[7] Acton, John “The History of Freedom,” 2.
[8] Acton, John “The History of Freedom,” 3.
[9] ] Zagorin, Perez “Lord Acton’s Ordeal: The Historian and Moral Judgment,” 11.

Purchase “The History of Freedom” by Lord Acton HERE