Order and Legitimacy - Political Thought in National Spain (Hardcover, Revised Ed.)

A growing body of readers is rediscovering Francis Graham Wilsons tremendous contribution to the study of politics and humane learning. In this volume he offers an extensive assessment of the nature of politics and the search for order in Spanish politics, concentrating on the central figures who defended the Church and communities during the Spanish Civil War. The book argues for the uniqueness of Spain among the other countries of Europe. For Wilson, the most salutary attribute of Spanish politics is found in the assemblage of smaller groupings of the citizenry within the larger society in communities; and it is in the smaller association that the most important aspects of moral, social and political life were nurtured. Part 1 includes assessments of three eminent Spanish traditionalists, Juan Donoso Corts, Jaime Balmes, and Menndez Pelayo, as well as studies of central figures from the period of the Spanish Civil WarJos Antonio and Ramiro de Maeztu. The final chapters are taken from an unpublished book-length manuscript, An Anchor in the Latin Mind, that Wilson had completed at the time of his death in 1976, and was recently discovered by the editors. For Wilson, Latin thinkers possess advantages others do nota political realism that can be reinvigorated. The recovery of Spanish traditionalism, according to this book, is dependent upon a return to the self-understanding of the ordering principles of Spanish politics and society. Wilsons affirmation of a Spanish traditionalist inheritance during his lifetime encouraged a return to authentic popular rule and a greater appreciation of Spanish achievements in politics and the moral life. H. Lee Cheek, Jr. is associate professor of political science at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. His work has appeared in the Journal of Politics, International Social Science Review, and Methodist History. He is the author of Calhoun and Popular Rule and editor of Calhoun: Selected Writings and Speeches. M. Susan Power is professor of political science at Arkansas State University. Her books include Before the Convention: Religion and the Founders and Jacques Maritain. Kathy B. Cheek is adjunct instructor at Lee University, a choreographer and teacher of dance. Thomas J. Metallo is assistant professor of political science at Lee University and a specialist in Spanish and Latin politics.