The notion of an ailing body politic feels sadly relevant today. My November blogpost reflects on a workshop held in September that explored how the notion of the body politic was deployed by republican writers in the C17 and C18.
www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/10/28/republican-bodies

With the new academic year just having begun it seems like a good time for a blogpost on travel, books and translation. I may not be travelling for a while, but at least I'll be reading and writing. www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/9/29/migration-mobility-and-translation-in-europe

As I prepare a conference paper on Thomas Hollis's donations to the Library at Bern, this month's blogpost offers a vignette on Hollis's hand of friendship to Rousseau - and its consequences. www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/8/28/thomas-hollis-and-jean-jacques-rousseau

This year the town in which I live is 800! In celebration this month’s blog reflects on the role of the North East - and particularly the river Tyne - during the mid-seventeenth century Revolution. @englishheritage.bsky.social www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/7/30/north-shields-800

There is a current emphasis on developing oracy (speaking & listening) alongside reading & writing to improve academic attainment & citizenship. These concerns are not new. They were shared by the stars of June's post Thomas Hollis & Thomas Spence. tinyurl.com/4snh2fv9

At a time when education seems to be under threat from all directions, this month’s post focuses on the activities of two men who were committed to spreading political knowledge & ideas for the good of society. www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/5/27/june-blogpost-a-tale-of-two-thomases-part-1

In this month's blogpost I travel from Oxford to Switzerland in the company of the eighteenth-century eccentric Thomas Hollis. www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/2025/4/29/thomas-hollis

A quick advert for April's blogpost, which reflects on a recent symposium celebrating the publication of Quentin Skinner's latest book Liberty as Independence. www.rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/202...

It was lovely to have an unexpected visit from you, Tom. Great to have proper time to talk - and I am glad the sun came out in the end!

This month’s blogpost claims that Thomas Spence’s methods of disseminating political information are still being used today. rachelhammersley.com/new-blog/202...