James Harrington developed an agrarian-republican and democratic political theory in his work

The Common-wealth of Oceana

(1656) which was to prove influential through the eighteenth-century, especially in the United States, and in particular contribute to many of the practical arrangements and ideological assumptions of modern democratic constitutions, notably the separation of executive, legislature and judiciary, and arrangements for secret ballots.

Life

Life

Born in Upton, Northamptonshire, on January 3rd, 1611, James Harrington was the eldest son of Sir Sapcote Harrington of Rand, near Lincoln in Lincolnshire, and Jane, daughter of Sir William Samwell of Upton. The Harrington family was of eminent ancient aristocracy and widely connected within the English power élite. Around 1600 they

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Citation: Clark, Robert. "James Harrington". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 August 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1990, accessed 19 March 2024.]

1990 James Harrington 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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