The Origin of the Welfare State in England and Germany, 1850–1914
The Origin of the Welfare State in England and Germany, 1850–1914
£40.00
GBPThis book is a comparative study of the origin of the welfare state in England and Germany, from 1850 to 1914. It presents original conclusions about the differences between British and German approaches. Peter Hennock analyses policies on social security and the public provision of medical care, dealing with public poor relief, industrial injury, with sickness, invalidity and old age, and with unemployment. In each case policies in Britain and in the German Empire are compared for their actual provisions, their consequences and the politics that produced them. He demonstrates that national insurance has played a larger role in Germany than in Britain from the beginning, as it still does today, and that decisions taken before 1914 are crucial to the long-term differences between the welfare state in the two countries. The book will appeal to students and scholars of British and European political history, social history and social policy.
- A groundbreaking comparison of how the two leading industrialising countries of Europe dealt with similar social problems in different ways
- The thematic approach and numerous tables make the book student-friendly
- Will appeal to students and scholars in modern British and European social history, social policy and the welfare state
Reviews & endorsements
'… excellent study.' Contemporary Review
'… this text is a substantial addition to the historiography of the welfare state. Hennock has developed a distinctive methodology founded upon the comparative study of England and Germany, which he uses to illuminate the unique features of each.' Medical History
'E. P. Hennock's profound knowledge of the genesis of social policies in the UK and Germany has already been demonstrated in several publications, and this latest book is another fascinating contribution. … Both social policy and comparative social policy would be seriously weakened, or even flawed, without historical contributions of the calibre provided by [Hennock's] latest volume.' Social Policy and Administration
'His style of prose is fluent and he succeeds in presenting his arguments succinctly but also convincingly.' The Historian
Product details
April 2007Paperback
9780521597708
400 pages
229 × 152 × 21 mm
0.53kg
4 b/w illus. 31 tables
Available
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Table of Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- Part I. Public Relief of the Poor:
- 1. The national framework
- 2. The Urban Poor Law
- Part II. The State and Industrial Injury:
- 3. Factory legislation to 1878
- 4. German accident insurance
- 5. British workmen's compensation
- 6. Factory legislation to 1914
- Part III. Sickness, Invalidity, and Old Age:
- 7. The friendly societies of England and Wales
- 8. From Prussian Hilfskassen to German Krankenkassen
- 9. Cash benefits, contribution and coverage in the Friendly Society Era
- 10. German invalidity and old age insurance
- 11. British old age pensions
- 12. National health insurance for Britain
- 13. Medical provision in Britain and Germany
- 14. Contributions and benefits in the National Insurance era
- 15. White-collar insurance
- Part IV. Unemployment:
- 16. Unemployment policies in Britain
- 17. Unemployment policies in Germany
- Conclusion
- Epilogue.
