A Sort of Conscience: the Wakefields - Philip Temple

A Sort of Conscience is a remarkably engaging study of the Wakefield family and the early settlement of British colonial societies. It draws on a rich store of sources to paint a portrait of a complex family whose influence crossed the globe.

At once notorious and visionary, Edward Gibbon Wakefield and his brothers played a key but controversial role in the early British settlement of New Zealand, Australia and Canada. Once famed as New Zealand's 'Founding Fathers', they have since become the arch-villains of all post-colonial scenarios of the past.

Deciding that neither myth made good historical sense, Philip Temple decided to produce a biography. In stitching together a net of letters and documents, Temple has produced the most comprehensive account of the family's role in the development of the Commonwealth.

This engaging narrative, written in a strong and evocative literary style, relates a story of courage and vision; cupidity and stupidity; high risk and adventure; success against the odds and, ultimately, terrible tragedy.

A gripping family story, A Sort of Conscience provides an accessible history of British colonial settlement in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The work comes complete with scholarly apparatus, including an introduction, extended notes and a bibliography.

Winner – 2003 Montana New Zealand Book Award for Biography; Ernest Scott History Prize; ARANZ Ian Wards Prize

Auckland University Press, 2002. Hardback, first edition, 586 pages. 

ISBN: 9781869402761

Condition: first edition hardback in excellent condition. Dust jacket in excellent condition. Heavy book. Former owner’s name on front page. Accompanying ephemera of a postcard from the author in response to the former owner.