The Liberty and Property Defence League (LPDL) was a historic organisation, founded in 1882 by Lord Elcho, for the support of ''

laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

. It served as a lobby group for industrialists and land-owners who were alarmed by

Georgism Georgism, in modern times also called Geoism, and known historically as the single tax movement, is an economic ideology holding that people should own the value that they produce themselves, while the economic rent derived from land—includ ...

("Single Tax"),

trade unionism A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

, and elements in the Gladstone administration, but attracted also many liberals and philosophical

individualist Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...

s. The League continued to exist until the 1920s, but its president, Wemyss (Lord Elcho), resigned in 1913. This was after the individualism of

Herbert Spencer Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 – 8 December 1903) was an English polymath active as a philosopher, psychologist, biologist, sociologist, and anthropologist. Spencer originated the expression "survival of the fittest", which he coined in '' ...

declined, which was the main ''raison d'être'' of the League. The ideas of the organisation were carried on by the Society of Individualists of Sir

Ernest Benn Sir Ernest John Pickstone Benn, 2nd Baronet, (25 June 1875 – 17 January 1954) was a British publisher, writer and political publicist. His father, John Benn, was a Liberal politician, who had been made a baronet in 1914. He was brother of t ...

. A weekly pamphlet put out by the League was called ''Jus: A Weekly Organ of Individualism'', which was edited by

individualist anarchist Individualist anarchism or anarcho-individualism is a collection of anarchist currents that generally emphasize the individual and their will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions, and ideological systems. Individuali ...

Wordsworth Donisthorpe __NOTOC__Wordsworth Donisthorpe (24 March 1847 – 30 January 1914) was an English barrister, individualist anarchist and inventor, pioneer of cinematography and chess enthusiast. Life and work Donisthorpe was born in Leeds, on 24 March 1847 ...

References

* {{cite journal, author = Bristow, Edward , year = 1975 , title = The Liberty and Property Defence League and Individualism , journal = Historical Journal , volume = 18 , issue = 4 , pages = 761–789, doi = 10.1017/S0018246X00008888, s2cid = 159915781

External links

Prophets of Property
Lawrence W. Reed.

The Freeman ''The Freeman'' (formerly published as ''The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty'' or ''Ideas on Liberty'') was an American libertarian magazine, formerly published by the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE). It was founded in 1950 by John Chambe ...

. Classical liberalism History of liberalism Libertarian organisations based in the United Kingdom