Abstract This introduction makes the case for a fresh approach to the history of extra‐parliamentary politics that examines both the practice of political organising and the organisation of political practices. In considering how historians of the long 19th century can move on from the new political history and improve dialogue with those of the 20th century, it builds on a growing interest in what has been termed ‘practical politics’. This means looking at political practices, or the doings – and the not‐doings – of politics. Outlining how ‘practice’ has been theorised, the introduction indicates how such a framework enables us both to address the central concerns of political history and to engage with a variety of historical fields. By construing histories of politics as histories of practices, it draws attention to political organising as a particularly valuable area of inquiry. The introduction concludes with an overview of the ten articles that make up this special issue, indicating the range of methodological and theoretical perspectives their authors take.
Naomi Lloyd‐Jones (Sun,) studied this question.