William Petty and Henry Cromwell on the History of Ireland

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William Petty understood Ireland pretty well and had some sympathies for Ireland. But he wasn't a person who had any experience of governing a place. He was hopeless with people, would tell them that they were ignorant and sad. So I didn't think he was temperamentally in any position to be a good governor. The period when William Petty and Henry Cromwell were together working on the business of the reconstruction of Ireland was very short. And so the evidence is there aspirations for a founder university. You could make it this great forward looking nation that could be, you know, kind of model for modernity could potentially have been very productive.

Anna Keay is a historian who specializes in the cultural heritage of Great Britain. As the director of the Landmark Trust, she has overseen the restoration of numerous historical buildings and monuments, while also serving as a prolific author and commentator on the country's architectural and artistic traditions. Her book, The Restless Republic: Britain Without a Crown, was one of Tyler’s top picks for 2022.

Tyler sat down with Anna to discuss the most plausible scenario where England could’ve remained a republic in the 17th century, what Robert Boyle learned from Sir William Petty, why some monarchs build palaces and others don’t, how renting from the Landmark Trust compares to Airbnb, how her job changes her views on wealth taxes, why neighborhood architecture has declined, how she’d handle the UK’s housing shortage, why giving back the Koh-i-Noor would cause more problems than it solves, why British houses have so little storage, the hardest part about living in an 800-year-old house, her favorite John Fowles book, why we should do more to preserve the Scottish Enlightenment, and more.

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Recorded February 23rd, 2023

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