The Road To 1945: British Politics and the Second World War
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Book Description
The best and most comprehensive account of British politics immediately before, during, and immediately after the Second World War. GUARDIAN
Product Description
The war years witnessed a radical shift in political power, expressed in Labour's decisive electoral victory victory in 1945. In his classic study - now revised - Paul Addison traces this sea-change back to the Thirties and powerfully recaptures the spirit of post-war reconstruction. 'It tells with wit, scholarship and imagination how the British people entered the Promised Land - or seemed to' OBSERVER 'This is a landmark in the writing of contemporary history and deserves wide acclaim' TLS
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is the rare book where its title tells you more about it than its subtitle. In recounting British politics from the late 1930s to the momentous general election of 1945, Paul Addison seeks to explain the transformation in British political attitudes that made the Labour Party's triumph possible. The dramatic nature of this transformation is demonstrated with the first chapter, which describes British politics in the years leading up to the war. This was an era of Conservative Party ascendancy, one aided by the political difficulties of their two main competitors. With the Liberal Party still recovering from their fracturing in the First World War and Labour striving to demonstrate its viability as a governing party, the Conservatives were able to win four of six general elections, either on their own or as the dominant partner of the 'National' governments of the 1930s, and Addison argues that they were poised to win the general election due in 1940 had the war not intervened.
Addison sees the Conservatives as disadvantaged by the conflict. While the beneficiaries of resurgent patriotism during the First World War, their political predominance in the 1930s ensured that they would receive the blame for the missteps and mistakes in the early months of the new conflict. Labour was the major beneficiary, and while the Conservatives retained their majority in the House of Commons, the travails of Neville Chamberlain's government gave Clement Attlee leverage. His refusal to serve under Chamberlain in May 1940 was the key factor in bringing about Chamberlain's resignation and his replacement as prime minister by Winston Churchill. Though Churchill maintained enormous popularity among the public throughout the war, it was Labour who benefited from an ideological shift leftward among the electorate during this period. Focused as he was on directing the war effort, Churchill conceded the initiative on domestic policy to the Labour minister; their championing of reports on postwar reconstruction and social reform left their party well positioned to appeal to reform-minded voters when the election was called after the end of the war in Europe.
Though originally published nearly four decades ago, Addison's book remains the standard history of British politics during the Second World War. This is largely because of its many strengths; well written and based on an extensive reading of both the relevant documents and related literature, it offers a compelling and insightful narrative of its subject. While some of the author's interpretations of the politics of the period have been challenged (by Kevin Jefferys in his book The Churchill Coalition and Wartime Politics, 1940-45, among others), this does not negate the book's value as a study of its subject. For anyone seeking to learn about the development of British politics in wartime, or how Labour won such a stunning electoral victory, this is the place to begin.
Addison sees the Conservatives as disadvantaged by the conflict. While the beneficiaries of resurgent patriotism during the First World War, their political predominance in the 1930s ensured that they would receive the blame for the missteps and mistakes in the early months of the new conflict. Labour was the major beneficiary, and while the Conservatives retained their majority in the House of Commons, the travails of Neville Chamberlain's government gave Clement Attlee leverage. His refusal to serve under Chamberlain in May 1940 was the key factor in bringing about Chamberlain's resignation and his replacement as prime minister by Winston Churchill. Though Churchill maintained enormous popularity among the public throughout the war, it was Labour who benefited from an ideological shift leftward among the electorate during this period. Focused as he was on directing the war effort, Churchill conceded the initiative on domestic policy to the Labour minister; their championing of reports on postwar reconstruction and social reform left their party well positioned to appeal to reform-minded voters when the election was called after the end of the war in Europe.
Though originally published nearly four decades ago, Addison's book remains the standard history of British politics during the Second World War. This is largely because of its many strengths; well written and based on an extensive reading of both the relevant documents and related literature, it offers a compelling and insightful narrative of its subject. While some of the author's interpretations of the politics of the period have been challenged (by Kevin Jefferys in his book The Churchill Coalition and Wartime Politics, 1940-45, among others), this does not negate the book's value as a study of its subject. For anyone seeking to learn about the development of British politics in wartime, or how Labour won such a stunning electoral victory, this is the place to begin.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I bought this book to assist me with my British Politics History course and I predict it will be of huge help. Despite a few creases on the first couple of pages and, remarkably, unfathomable red 'note-taking' on one of the pages, it arrived in decent condition and in double quick time.
0 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Bought to assist me with my university studies, easy to read and very informative about politics from 1920s to 1945. came quickly in good condition many thanks
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