28. May 2026 19:00
Professor Catherine Marshall
Synopsis:
This lecture revisits the concept of “political deference“ and explores its potential to help repair the British constitutional system in the face of recent democratic and institutional strain. Often reduced to a vague notion of respect for authority or the monarchy, deference is here redefined through the work of Walter Bagehot, who saw it as a rational and stabilising force within a hierarchical but liberal constitutional framework. The paper traces the historical evolution of this idea from the late 18th century to the present, drawing on Edward Shils’s sociological account of deference as a universal civic need—even in democratic societies. Marshall argues that political deference, properly understood, has been eroded in recent years, particularly through populist appropriations of constitutional language under Boris Johnson. Far from advocating codification, she calls for a renewed civic ethic based on trust, restraint, and historical awareness. In uncodified systems like Britain’s, political deference functions as an essential support—alongside the rule of law and parliamentary sovereignty. Recovering its meaning is not about restoring hierarchy, but about preserving the moral foundations of democratic governance in Britain.
Please register for the Presseclub by Mai 27 via:
DBG.Rhein-Main@debrige.de
or join us online:
“Deference in Politics” a Lecture by Professor Catherine Marshall | Besprechung beitreten | Microsoft Teams
Professor Catherine Marshall
Catherine Marshall is a Full Professor of British Studies at CY Cergy Paris University (France).A specialist in the intellectual and political history of the Victorian period and its legacy in twentieth- and twenty-first-century Britain, her research has examined the ideas and influence of Walter Bagehot, led to the discovery and publication of the papers of the Metaphysical Society (1869–1881), and explored the evolution of political “deference” within the British constitution in her book Political Deference in a Democratic Age: British Politics and the Constitution from the Eighteenth Century to Brexit (Palgrave Macmillan, 2021). She currently leads the research axis “History of Political and Economic Ideas”, one of the three core research areas of the AGORA Research Centre at CY Cergy Paris University. Her ongoing research explores the historical foundations and evolution of British Conservatism from the nineteenth century to the present, with particular attention to its intellectual and ideological dimensions
28. May 2026 19:00
Professor Catherine Marshall
Venue
Frankfurter Presseclub and virtual via Teams
Ulmenstraße 20,
60325 Frankfurt
Synopsis:
This lecture revisits the concept of “political deference“ and explores its potential to help repair the British constitutional system in the face of recent democratic and institutional strain. Often reduced to a vague notion of respect for authority or the monarchy, deference is here redefined through the work of Walter Bagehot, who saw it as a rational and stabilising force within a hierarchical but liberal constitutional framework. The paper traces the historical evolution of this idea from the late 18th century to the present, drawing on Edward Shils’s sociological account of deference as a universal civic need—even in democratic societies. Marshall argues that political deference, properly understood, has been eroded in recent years, particularly through populist appropriations of constitutional language under Boris Johnson. Far from advocating codification, she calls for a renewed civic ethic based on trust, restraint, and historical awareness. In uncodified systems like Britain’s, political deference functions as an essential support—alongside the rule of law and parliamentary sovereignty. Recovering its meaning is not about restoring hierarchy, but about preserving the moral foundations of democratic governance in Britain.
Please register for the Presseclub by Mai 27 via:
DBG.Rhein-Main@debrige.de
or join us online:
“Deference in Politics” a Lecture by Professor Catherine Marshall | Besprechung beitreten | Microsoft Teams
Professor Catherine Marshall
Catherine Marshall is a Full Professor of British Studies at CY Cergy Paris University (France).A specialist in the intellectual and political history of the Victorian period and its legacy in twentieth- and twenty-first-century Britain, her research has examined the ideas and influence of Walter Bagehot, led to the discovery and publication of the papers of the Metaphysical Society (1869–1881), and explored the evolution of political “deference” within the British constitution in her book Political Deference in a Democratic Age: British Politics and the Constitution from the Eighteenth Century to Brexit (Palgrave Macmillan, 2021). She currently leads the research axis “History of Political and Economic Ideas”, one of the three core research areas of the AGORA Research Centre at CY Cergy Paris University. Her ongoing research explores the historical foundations and evolution of British Conservatism from the nineteenth century to the present, with particular attention to its intellectual and ideological dimensions