Plaid Cymru
An Ideological Analysis
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Welsh Academic Press
Published:7th May '26
Should be back in stock very soon
In his ground-breaking study of Plaid Cymru’s political philosophy, Dr Alan Sandry challenges the conventional assumption that the party conforms to the traditional model of a nationalist party, contending that it shares the political ideologies of the environmentalist Green, decentralist Liberal and welfarist Socialist agendas.
Referencing party literature and numerous interviews conducted with leading figures, Plaid Cymru – An Ideological Analysis investigates the party’s philosophical development since its establishment in 1925 and, using the ideological model created by the eminent political scientist Professor Michael Freeden, concludes that Plaid Cymru is primarily a socialist party.
“valuable … controversial … this book deserves wider notice from those interested in political parties and ideological relations within them”
David S. Moon (Political Studies Review)
“illuminating … offers useful, brief overviews of some of the key intellectual and political traditions that have informed the party’s thinking, from liberalism to socialism, from linguistic conservatism to environmentalism and feminism”
Daniel G. Williams (Studies on National Movements)
“Sandry’s highly informative navigation of his readers through the party’s historical recourse to a miscellany of supplementary ideologies lends support to Freeden’s assessment that nationalism is a thin-centered ideology”
Peter C. Grosvenor (Nations and Nationalism)
“a party needs a cohesive philosophical outlook, one that can guide it in constructing a political programme and making difficult choices between priorities as they arise … [for Plaid Cymru] that is easier said than done and Sandry’s book tells you why”
John Osmond (Planet)
ISBN: 9781860571398
Dimensions: 216mm x 138mm x 17mm
Weight: unknown
240 pages
2nd Revised edition