W. Winston Elliott III

Firing the Imagination: The Legacy of Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk offers us a rich legacy in words and deeds. If we heed them we may yet play our part in preserving our Republic’s ordered liberty... The thought of Dr. Russell Kirk has inspired many people and many...

These Too Shall Pass: The Arena, Not the Bunker

The Imaginative Conservative has never once proclaimed originality. Rather, it has proclaimed that true and abiding things exist, untouched by the mockery or ignorance of man. There are things that always exist, but are often forgotten... The...

In Honor of Mr. Thomas Jefferson’s 275th Birthday

Here are recommended essays regarding Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 - July 4, 1826) on The Imaginative Conservative: Looking for Mr. Jefferson by Clyde Wilson Thomas Jefferson’s Birthday by Clyde Wilson

Homer’s “Odyssey” Is a Gift

“Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story of that man skilled in all ways of contending, the wanderer, harried for years on end, after he plundered the stronghold on the proud height of Troy.” So begins Homer’s...

“Russell Kirk: American Conservative” — A Definitive Biography

The Imaginative Conservative's co-founder and editor-at-large, Bradley J. Birzer, has received another award for his outstanding, new biography of seminal conservative thinker, Russell Kirk. Following on the heels of The Imaginative Conservative's own 2015 Book...

Ten Books by Eva Brann: Spark Your Imagination

Our readers have come to know and to admire Eva Brann, Senior Contributor to The Imaginative Conservative and tutor at St. John's College, who always challenges us with her insightful writings on liberal learning, the hidden treasures in Homer's poems, the...

An Ode to Great Books and a Beautiful Library

Today’s offering in our Timeless Essay series affords readers the opportunity to join Will Durant and me as we contemplate bibliophilic exuberance. —W. Winston Elliott III, Publisher "If I were rich I would have many books,...

Five Ways to Help The Imaginative Conservative

Do you enjoy reading our reasoned and reflective essays at The Imaginative Conservative, as we pursue the Good, the True, and the Beautiful? Do you enjoy engaging in discussions of culture, history, politics, and economics, in the tradition of Russell...

Russell Kirk: American Conservative – Imaginative Conservative 2015 Book of the Year

The Imaginative Conservative is pleased to announce its 2015 Book of the Year: Bradley J. Birzer's Russell Kirk: American Conservative. This is the first in what will be an annual recognition given by the editors of The Imaginative Conservative to the...

Five Candles, Each Blazing

Winston Elliott III & Brad Birzer For those of you who do not know, Winston Elliott is the mastermind behind this whole venture, The Imaginative Conservative. I first met Winston twenty summers ago—at a conference he...

In Gratitude & Hope: The Adventure Continues

Today we celebrate the five-year anniversary of The Imaginative Conservative. While it is true that we first published on July 10, 2010, the seeds of our efforts were planted much earlier. Friendships of decades, books inherited from the past, and lives spent in pursuit...

Thucydides and Never-Ending War

Thucydides' account of the twenty-seven-year war between Athens and Sparta is filled with timeless questions about human conflict: When are aggression and vengeance justified? Can peace ever truly be secured by war? How does war affect the integrity of language...

James Madison and the Constitution

Historian Jack Rakove talks about James Madison’s role in the creation of the Constitution and his arguments in support of the new frame of government in the Federalist papers. St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland, hosted this event as...

Clever Comedy: Whit Stillman’s Cosmopolitans

We highly recommend this marvelous pilot episode for The Cosmopolitans, a new series by our friend Whit Stillman. Please watch this witty comedy and take the survey at Amazonoriginals.com so that they will support a complete...