Changes

==History==

==History==

The modern conservative movement can be traced to [[Edmund Burke]], a British politician who provided a statement of his ideology in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790).<ref>Kirk, Russell, ''The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Elliot'', ACLS Humanities E-Book; 7 Revised edition (August 1, 2008), p. 6. "Conscious conservatism, in the modern sense, did not manifest itself until 1790, with the publication of ''Reflections on the Revolution in France''.</ref> Burke's views were developed in response to the social reengineering projects of the French revolutionaries. Burke was a Whig and a supporter the American Revolution. His political position was to the left of the Tories, a major party that supported royal authority against the parliament. American Tories, or Loyalists, fled to Canada during the Revolution, so this faction played no role is subsequent U.S political history. Liberals may identify conservatism with right-wing views. But as this example illustrates, conservatives are not necessarily the most right-wing group on the political spectrum. According to Burke, "change is the means of our preservation." So the idea that conservatives oppose all change is another liberal canard.

As an intellectual movement, conservativism can be traced to [[Edmund Burke]], a British politician who provided a statement of his ideology in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790).<ref>Kirk, Russell, ''The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Elliot'', ACLS Humanities E-Book; 7 Revised edition (August 1, 2008), p. 6. "Conscious conservatism, in the modern sense, did not manifest itself until 1790, with the publication of ''Reflections on the Revolution in France''.</ref> Burke's views were developed in response to the social reengineering projects of the French revolutionaries. Burke was a Whig and a supporter the American Revolution. His political position was to the left of the Tories, a major party that supported royal authority against the parliament. American Tories, or Loyalists, fled to Canada during the Revolution, so this faction played no role is subsequent U.S political history. Liberals may identify conservatism with right-wing views. But as this example illustrates, conservatives are not necessarily the most right-wing group on the political spectrum. According to Burke, "change is the means of our preservation." So the idea that conservatives oppose all change is another liberal canard.

Since America lacks an aristocracy or an established church, the tradition that American conservatives defend is not simple to define. Schneider identifies American conservatism with support of republicanism, "the rule of law and the Christian religion," and a defense of "Western civilization from the challenges of modernist culture and totalitarian governments."<ref name="Schneider" />

Since America lacks an aristocracy or an established church, the tradition that American conservatives defend is not simple to define. Schneider identifies American conservatism with support of republicanism, "the rule of law and the Christian religion," and a defense of "Western civilization from the challenges of modernist culture and totalitarian governments."<ref name="Schneider" />