Discourse on the inwardness and scope of Royal Sovereignty in the Tory Party in the 60s and 70s of the XVIII century

The paper examines the debate about the inwardness and scope of Royal Sovereignty that has unfolded in pamphlets, sermons and the Tory press since George III reign in Great Britain. The key features of this discourse and the changes in Tory constitutional beliefs that became evident in the 60s and 70s of the XVIII century are highlighted and explored. The reasons for these changes are analysed and their close connection with the political doctrines of the “Old Tories”, which originated in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, is emphasized. During the period under study it is emphasised that the Tory Party had no political ideology in the strict sense, and that current policy was influenced by concerns about the sustainability of the English constitution associated with the events in the North American colonies of Great Britain. Furthermore, it systematizes contemporary British historiography and shows the validity of cautious approaches by supporters of the critical path to the assessment of Tory identity during the period under study. It is argued that the Toryism of the 60s and 70s of the XVIII century reinterprets the experience of the “old Tories” by combining the traditional respect for the royal prerogative with a gradual recognition of the rights and privileges of parliament.