What is conservatism?
The nutshell
Conservatism is a political idea that values tradition and keeping what already works. It usually prefers slow, careful change over big, sudden change.
Every fact on this page comes from neutral reference works and the party's own words. Each source tag — like EB — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
What conservatism means
Conservatism is a political idea, or tradition, about how a country should be run. The name comes from the word conserve, which means to keep or protect. Conservatism tends to value tradition, order and things that have worked for a long time. It usually prefers slow, careful change over big, sudden change.EB
Where the idea comes from
The modern idea is often traced to a writer called Edmund Burke in the 1790s. Burke argued that a country should change slowly and build on what past generations learned, rather than being remade all at once.SEP This was a reaction to the French Revolution, when France changed its whole system very fast.
What conservatism often supports
Conservatism is a broad tradition, not one fixed list of policies. Even so, conservative thinking often puts weight on tradition, family, law and order, private property andenterprise — the freedom to start and run a business.EB The exact mix is different from one country to another.
Conservatism in the UK
In the UK, the main party linked with conservative ideas is the Conservative Party. It is one of the two largest UK parties, and is usually placed on the centre-right of the political map.EB The party describes its own values as including individual liberty, meaning personal freedom, and personal responsibility.Con Conservative ideas are not held only by one party, though. People in other parties can hold some conservative views too.
- The word conservatism comes from 'conserve', which means to keep or protect what already exists
- Encyclopaedia Britannica describes conservatism as valuing tradition and gradual change over sudden change
- Conservatism is a broad tradition, not one fixed list of policies, and its exact mix of views differs from country to country
- Conservatism with a small c is the idea. The Conservative Party is the main UK party that holds it, but the idea is broader than one party
- Conservatism does not mean never changing. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy notes it favours slow, tested change rather than no change
- Valuing tradition does not always line up with the political right on every single issue, and what counts as conservative differs by country
The deep end6 min
What conservatism is, and why it is not one single thing
Conservatism is usually described as an outlook or approach rather than a fixed programme. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines it as an approach that mistrusts both pure theory and revolution, and instead trusts experience and the gradual improvement of tried and tested arrangements.SEP Encyclopaedia Britannica describes it as a political doctrine that values traditional institutions and prefers gradual change under continuity and stability.EB
Edmund Burke and the French Revolution
Both reference works trace the modern form of conservatism to Edmund Burke and the 1790 book Reflections on the Revolution in France.SEP Burke did not argue against all change. One line often quoted from that book is that a state without the means of some change is without the means of its own survival. The argument was for careful reform that keeps what works, not for stopping change altogether.
Different strands, one label
Writers on conservatism stress that the tradition holds several strands. Encyclopaedia Britannica notes that conservative parties can blend supporters of an active state and social harmony with economic liberals who want a free market and a smaller state.EB Because of this, the word covers a range of views, and what counts as conservative in one country can differ from another.
Conservatism in the UK today
In the UK, the Conservative Party is one of the two largest parties and is usually placed on the centre-right.EB The party states that it believes in individual liberty and personal responsibility, and sets out plans for lower taxes and a smaller state.Con Those are the party's own words about itself, and other parties describe conservative ideas differently. The sibling topics on left and right and on the political compass look at how ideas like these are mapped.