Statesman, pre-eminent leader and founder of the free world's then largest and most formidable trade union, Ernest Bevin was one of the most rousing figures of the twentieth century. Minister of Labour in the wartime coalition during the Second World War, he was Churchill's right-hand man, masterminding the home front while the war supremo commanded the battle front. Afterwards, he was Foreign Secretary at one of the most critical moments in international history, responsible for keeping Stalin and communism out of Western Europe, and for creating West Germany, NATO and the transatlantic alliance, all of which underpin European democracy and security to this day. An orphan farm boy from Bristol, Bevin's astonishing rise to fame and power is unmatched by any leader to this day. In this discerning and wide-ranging biography, Andrew Adonis examines how 'the working-class John Bull' grew to a position of such authority, and offers a critical reassessment of his life and influence. Finally exploring Bevin's powerful legacy and lessons for our own age, Adonis restores this charismatic statesman to his rightful place among the pantheon of Britain's greatest political leaders.

"Alan Bullock's monumental biography, originally published in three volumes between 1960 and 1983 and described by Clement Attlee as 'a massive work about a massive man', is here issued in a one-volume abridgement for a new generation of readers."--BOOK JACKET.

First published in 1993, this book presents a biography of a central figure in the development of both the labour movement and British politics in the first half of the twentieth century. This highly accessible account of Bevin’s life and career was the first to make use of documents pertaining to his activities during the Second World War and bring together numerous secondary studies to posit an alternative interpretation. The book is split into chronological sections dealing with his early years, his time a trade union leader from 1911 to 1929, the beginnings of his involvement in the labour party during 1929-1939, and his time in office as Minister of Labour and then Foreign Secretary.

First published in 1993, this book presents a biography of a central figure in the development of both the labour movement and British politics in the first half of the twentieth century. This highly accessible account of Bevin’s life and career was the first to make use of documents pertaining to his activities during the Second World War and bring together numerous secondary studies to posit an alternative interpretation. The book is split into chronological sections dealing with his early years, his time a trade union leader from 1911 to 1929, the beginnings of his involvement in the labour party during 1929-1939, and his time in office as Minister of Labour and then Foreign Secretary.

Noisy popular liberal interventionism? Or a more conservative, diplomatic approach concentrating on co-operation between nations? This is the debate that lies at the heart of modern politics and Hurd traces its most interesting and influential exponents. He starts with Canning and Castelreagh in post Waterloo Britain; to a generation later, the victory of the interventionist Palmerston over Aberdeen; then to Salisbury (Imperialism) and Grey (European balance of power); and finally to Eden and Bevin who combined to lay the foundations of a post-war compromise. That delicate balance has served its purpose for over half a century, but as we enter a new era of terrorism and racial conflict, the old questions and divisions are re-surfacing . . .

Edmund Dell examines the Attlee government's rejection of the Schuman Plan for the establishment of a common market for coal and steel and reassesses Bevan's conduct as foreign secretary. The story is placed in the context of the "big questions" dominating British policy formation: security, the dollar shortage, the American attack on the sterling area, and pressure for European integration.

There is a sickness at the heart of left-wing British politics, and though predominantly below the surface, it is silently spreading, becoming ever more malignant. With three separate inquiries into anti-Semitism in the Labour Party in the first six months of 2016 alone, it seems hard to believe that, until the 1980s, the British left was broadly pro-Israel. And while the election of Jeremy Corbyn may have thrown a harsher spotlight on the crisis, it is by no means a recent phenomenon. The widening gulf between British Jews and the anti-Israel left - born out of antiapartheid campaigns and now allying itself with Islamist extremists who demand Israel's destruction - did not happen overnight or by chance: political activists made it happen. This book reveals who they were, why they chose Palestine and how they sold their cause to the left. Based on new academic research into the origins of this phenomenon, combined with the author's daily work observing political extremism, contemporary hostility to Israel, and anti-Semitism, this book brings new insight to the left's increasingly controversial 'Jewish problem'.

A new interpretation of the British government's policy towards Germany in the years immediately after 1945, and a reassessment of the part this policy played in the development of the Cold War.

A new understanding of the post World War II era, showing what occurred when the British Empire wouldn’t step aside for the rising American superpower—with global insights for today. An enduring myth of the twentieth century is that the United States rapidly became a superpower in the years after World War II, when the British Empire—the greatest in history—was too wounded to maintain a global presence. In fact, Derek Leebaert argues in Grand Improvisation, the idea that a traditionally insular United States suddenly transformed itself into the leader of the free world is illusory, as is the notion that the British colossus was compelled to retreat. The United States and the U.K. had a dozen abrasive years until Washington issued a “declaration of independence” from British influence. Only then did America explicitly assume leadership of the world order just taking shape. Leebaert’s character-driven narrative shows such figures as Churchill, Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennan in an entirely new light, while unveiling players of at least equal weight on pivotal events. Little unfolded as historians believe: the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan; the Korean War; America’s descent into Vietnam. Instead, we see nonstop U.S. improvisation until America finally lost all caution and embraced obligations worldwide, a burden we bear today. Understanding all of this properly is vital to understanding the rise and fall of superpowers, why we’re now skeptical of commitments overseas, how the Middle East plunged into disorder, why Europe is fracturing, what China intends—and the ongoing perils to the U.S. world role.

A fascinating new account of Britain's uneasy relationship with the European continent since the end of the Second World War, set against the backdrop of decolonization, the Cold War and the Anglo-American relationship. Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon charts Britain's evolution from an island of imperial Europeans to one of post-imperial Eurosceptics.