Political Loyalty and the Nation-State

by Michael Waller (Editor), Andrew Linklater (Editor)

Political Loyalty and the Nation-State examines the gradual weakening of the state's ability to order the political allegiances of its subjects. At the focal centre of the book lies the question of the extent to which it is possible to invest political principles, such as the rules and procedures of democracy, with a sentiment of loyalty and whether political loyalty can become merely a matter of choice and personal responsibility. The authors consider theoretical issues, problems of loyalty arising from population movement and case studies of conflicts of loyalty from Italy, Northern Ireland, and Russia. It is shown that loyalty can become decoupled from state, territory and nation; that loyalties can be multiple; and that today's loyalties reflect advanced attitudes towards difference.

256 pages, Hardcover

First published July 29, 2003

About the author

Michael Waller is British and was born in the industrial north of Yorkshire. After being asked to leave school by his Headmaster he began a varied work career. This went from Chemist to Dog Catcher with stints as a Bingo Caller and door-to-door Insurance Salesman in between. For twenty years he worked in the oil and chemical industry which took him to the Middle East and finally the USA where he is now retired and living in upstate New York.