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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.
Statesman, pre-eminent leader and founder of the free world's then
largest and most formidable trade union, Ernest Bevin was one of
the greatest and most inspirational figures of the twentieth
century. Minister of Labour in the wartime coalition during the
Second World War, he was at Churchill's right hand, masterminding
the home front while the war supremo commanded the battle front.
Following the war, he was Foreign Secretary at one of the most
pivotal moments of 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. Born into abject
poverty, an orphan farm boy from Bristol with virtually no formal
education, Bevin's remarkable rise to fame and power is unmatched
by any leader to this day. In this insightful and wide-ranging new
biography, Andrew Adonis examines how 'the working-class John Bull'
grew to a position of such authority, and offers a critical
reassessment of Bevin's life and influence. Skilfully bringing to
life this extraordinary figure, Adonis explores Bevin's powerful
legacy and lessons for our own age, restoring this charismatic
statesman to his rightful place among the pantheon of Britain's
greatest political leaders.
Britain's Brexit voters are right. They have been shamefully
neglected. But the answer is to change Britain, not to leave
Europe. This book sets out how we can radically improve the lives
of people and communities shut out from prosperity. The EU, despite
its frailties and strains, is a success story. The advantages of
leaving are illusory: no gains in trade from deals with
protectionist China and the United States can compensate for what
is being lost in Europe. Britain is weakening a pillar of the
world's diplomatic and trade order at the same time as weakening
itself - an act of self-harm, especially when so many countries are
retreating from democracy, free trade and progressive values. In
Saving Britain Will Hutton and Andrew Adonis set out a bold plan to
transform Britain and fight for Europe as a force for good at home
and abroad.
In the wake of the inconclusive May 2010 general election Lord
Adonis and other senior Labour figures sat down for talks with the
Liberal Democrat leadership to try to persuade them to govern
Britain together in a Lib - Lab coalition. The talks ultimately
resulted in failure for Labour amid recriminations on both sides
and the accusation that the Lib Dems had conducted a dutch auction,
inviting Labour to outbid the Tories on a shopping list of demands.
Despite calls for him to give his own account of this historic
sequence of events, Adonis has kept his own counsel until now.
Published to coincide with the third anniversary of the general
election that would eventually produce an historic first coalition
government since the Second World War, 5 Days In May is a
remarkable and important insider account of the dramatic
negotiations that led to its formation. It also offers the author's
views on what the future holds as the run-up to the next election
begins. 5 Days in May presents a unique eyewitness account of a
pivotal moment in political history.
The decades since the end of the Second World War have seen massive
change sweep across Britain's social, cultural and political
landscape. Yet throughout this period, one thing has remained
constant and unchanging: the thorny question of our relationship
with Europe. Europe, and Britain's place in or out of it, has
always been a hugely divisive factor - on either side of the
political spectrum - creating warring camps in both the Labour and
Conservative parties. Famous Europhiles to put their heads above
the parapets over the years have included Conservatives Ted Heath
and David Cameron, as well as Tony Blair for Labour, while leading
Europhobes count among their number the former Conservative Prime
Ministers Anthony Eden and Margaret Thatcher. Born out of a series
of Oxford University lectures devised by the former director of the
Number 10 Policy Unit, Andrew Adonis, Half in, Half Out presents a
comprehensive and enlightening look at Britain's Prime Ministers of
the past seven decades - and explores their often hugely differing
attitudes towards our neighbours on the other side of the Channel.
Starting with the premiership of Sir Winston Churchill, and ending
with Theresa May, the book examines in fascinating and forensic
detail the crucial relationships between our leaders and Europe.
With each chapter written by a prominent political figure,
including Sir Nicholas Soames, David Owen and Rachel Reeves, the
book provides some hugely revealing portraits of Britain's former
leaders, shining a light on their sometimes warm, and at other
times downright hostile, attitudes towards Europe.
Making Aristocracy Work explores the political role of the British
peerage in the thirty years before the First World War. It charts
its transition from ruling class to embattled faction, analysing
the response of the peers to the challenge of democracy and their
impact on the constitutional order which emerged from the turbulent
politics of the late Victorian and Edwardian era. The book opens
with a study of the House of Lords, assessing its strengths and
weaknesses as a political institution and offering new
interpretations of the constitutional crises of 1884-5 and 1909-11.
It proceeds to assess the wider activity of the peerage in
national, local, and imperial government, and the changing nature
of its mentalite as a political elite. The evolution of the peerage
is no simplistic story of descent from power to impotence, argues
Dr Adonis. Under Lord Salisbury, the peers met challenges to their
political standing with a determination to refashion their
authority and safeguard their influence. They partially succeeded
in so doing, and their efforts - successful or not - left a heavy
imprint on Britain's fledgling democracy. A readable book
thoroughly grounded in the aristocracy's rich archives, Making
Aristocracy Work is an important contribution to our understanding
of the development of Britain's modern political system.
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