THE NINETEENTH-CENTURY HISTORY TEXT-BOOK.

The article focuses on historical education in the nineteenth century in Great Britain. History textbooks should be constantly changing. They are the reflection of how each generation regards the achievements of its predecessors and evaluates what motivated their conduct, and with what result. Since they are largely used by the young, they represent what their elders think they ought to know. In this article an attempt is made to consider the aims and purposes of nineteenth-century history-teaching through a survey of the books which were being written for use in schools. The changing pattern of history textbooks in the nineteenth century marks what advances were being made in the teaching of the subject. The first history textbook in the nineteenth century was "Historical Questions," published privately in the year 1800. For over a quarter of a century there was little to challenge the virtual monopoly of the book. But the emergence of history as a separate subject, and not as an adjunct to the classics, and the influences encouraging modern history opened up a market. By the 1850s books were appearing with some profusion.