Burke, Venice, and the Allure of Aristocratic Republicanism

• In Event: Themes in 18th Century Political Thought

Abstract

Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is generally known as a stern critic of republicanism, especially in his attacks on the French Revolution. But Burke’s aversion to republicanism was never total. Like many of his contemporaries, Burke expressed considerable admiration for the republic of Venice which he believed had achieved remarkable levels of political stability, commercial prosperity, civic freedom, and success in war. However, Burke’s defence of Venetian republicanism went beyond the usual celebrations of the Serenissima found in early modern political thought. In his writings on Ireland, Burke particularly admired how Venice managed the uneven distribution of privileges across and between social classes. In Burke’s imagined Venice, the noble families monopolized the high offices of state while other commercial privileges were reserved exclusively for the citizens (cittadini) who could thereby become rich as compensation for their political exclusion. In Ireland, by contrast, there was no such balance. The Protestant descendants of English conquerors monopolised political rights and commercial privileges, while the Catholic majority enjoyed few civil rights and no commercial advantages at all. Irish Protestants thus formed a ‘master caste’ that lorded over all Irish Catholics, generating resentment and revolt. Had the English looked to Venice, Burke implied, they would have seen how to avoid the concentrations rights and privileges that threaten social stability. Although Burke’s views on Venice were frequently mistaken (he often confused the cittadini with the popolani, for example) they nevertheless provide a valuable insight into what he thought a sustainable aristocratic order in post-conquest Ireland might have looked like. The paper concludes with a reflection on what the history of republicanism might look like if Venice rather than Florence were placed front and centre.

Author

• Ross Carroll, Dublin City University