Political Science at the LSE: A History of the Department of Government, from the Webbs to Covid

The volume uses detailed archival research, particularly in the early chapters, as well as over thirty interviews with a range of individuals with unique perspectives on the Department. These include current and former faculty and students (ranging from academics such as Christopher Hood, Anne Phillips and Tony Travers, to graduates who have subsequently become politicians—such as Anneliese Dodds, former UK Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Kennedy Stewart and Michael Fougere, both mayors in Canada), as well as others with strong links to the Department, such as Meghnad (Baron) Desai, and Professors Tim Besley and Nick Barr.

This monograph offers a wealth of insights on the history of political science not only at the LSE, but in British academia more broadly. It speaks to a wide historical and social science audience concerned with Fabian and socialist history, the history of politics and education, and the development of British political science. Of course, it also offers appeal to more immediate audiences, such as prospective and current students, alumni, and others throughout the wider LSE community. As a history of the LSE, as well as of the development of British higher education, it serves as both a specific case study and a general representative of wider trends within universities during the twentieth and early twentieth-first centuries. A unique feature of this monograph is that it represents the collective efforts of students from the LSE Government Department (including undergraduate, MSc and PhD), who worked under the leadership of Professor Cheryl Schonhardt-Bailey (Head of Government Department) and Dr Gordon Bannerman (British Historian). This collaboration has enabled a rich array of perspectives on the history of the Department but has also brought the monograph to life with personal ties to the Department itself.