History
David Priestland
Merchant, Soldier, Sage: A New History of Power
1:00pm | Saturday 15 September 2012Tickets: | Duration: | Venue: |
£N/A | 1 Hour | The Oxfordshire Museum |
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This was an Oxford Literary Festival 2012 Event.
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History shows that the world has been ruled by three different power groups or castes – the merchant, the soldier and the sage – argues Oxford don Dr David Priestland. These three groups struggle alongside the worker for power, and, when one gains supremacy, it can be difficult to break that grip. Priestland claims that when one caste becomes too dominant, it usually signals a point of drastic change -– and that change can often be violent. And he will demonstrate how previous occupants of Blenheim Palace have fitted into this caste system.
In Merchant, Soldier, Sage, Priestland describes a world showing all the classic signs of imminent change. The ruling power, the merchant, is under pressure from the soldier and sage and a major power shift is on the cards. He warns that society must learn the lessons of the past, particularly of the similar 1920s, if change is not to be as devastating as before.
Priestland is a lecturer in modern history at the University of Oxford and fellow of St Edmund Hall. His The Red Flag was shortlisted for the Longman/History Today Prize.