ABSTRACT
The historical approach to the welfare state emphasizes the contrasts of and continuity with the “Poor Law Period,” a prehistory of modern welfare states (Flora and Heidenheimer, 1984). The phrase “the welfare state” was first used for post-1945 Britain. Ever since, it has been used to describe economic and social protection for citizens, especially the demand for comprehensive social security. Freedom from want has been tied to greater equality of opportunity via educational reform (Briggs, 1961). Any differences between objectives were often left unstated, perhaps for the sake of expediency.
