Ernest Bevin

Ernest Bevin
Author: Andrew Adonis
Publisher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 311
Release: 2020-07-02
Genre: History
ISBN: 1785906135

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.

British Labour and the Cold War

British Labour and the Cold War
Author: Peter Weiler
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Total Pages: 456
Release: 1988
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780804714648

A critical examination of the labour government and trades Union Congress in the immediate postwar period, this book argues that the Cold War was not just a traditional conflict between states but also an attempt to contain the growth of radical working-class movements at home and abroad. These radical movements, stimulated by the Second World War and its aftermath, seemed to policymakers within the Labour Party and the TUC to threaten British interests. The author contends that the Labour government never seriously considered following a socialist foreign policy, but instead sought to shape political developments throughout the world in ways most conductive to maintaining Britain's traditional economic and imperial interests. The government was able to follow established policies abroad and increasingly at home at least in part because British trade union leaders supported its attempts to prevent radicals and communists from coming to power in trade union movements inside Britain and throughout the world. In so doing, the trade union movement significantly extended its links with the state, in particular by cooperating with it in the sphere of foreign and colonial labour policy.

Ernest Bevin (Routledge Revivals)

Ernest Bevin (Routledge Revivals)
Author: Peter Weiler
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 246
Release: 2016-05-05
Genre: History
ISBN: 1317198425

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.

The British Empire in the Middle East, 1945-1951

The British Empire in the Middle East, 1945-1951
Author: William Roger Louis
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 828
Release: 1984
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780198229605

With intellectual rigor and careful attention to recently released papers, Wm. Roger Louis's study asks: Why did Britain's colonial empire begin to collapse in 1945 and how did the post-war Labour government attempt to sustain a vision of the old Empire through imperialism in the Middle East?

Human Rights and the End of Empire

Human Rights and the End of Empire
Author: Alfred William Brian Simpson
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 1188
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780199267897

The European Convention on Human Rights of 1950 established the most effective international system of human rights protection ever created. This is the first book that gives a comprehensive account of how it came into existence, of the part played in its genesis by the British government, and of its significance for Britain in the period between 1953 and 1966.

The Labour Party and the world, volume 1

The Labour Party and the world, volume 1
Author: Rhiannon Vickers
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Total Pages: 354
Release: 2013-07-19
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1847795943

This electronic version has been made available under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) open access license. This is the first comprehensive study of the political ideology and history of the Labour Party's world-view and foreign policy. It argues that the development of Labour's foreign policy perspective should be seen not as the development of a socialist foreign policy but as an application of the ideas of liberal internationalism. The first volume outlines and assesses the early development and evolution of Labour's world-view. It then follows the course of the Labour party's foreign policy during a tumultuous period on the international stage, including the First World War, the Russian Revolution, the Spanish Civil War, the build up to and violent reality of the Second World War, and the start of the Cold War. This highly readable book provides an excellent analysis of Labour's foreign policy during the period in which Labour experienced power for the first time.

Fifty Key Figures in Twentieth-century British Politics

Fifty Key Figures in Twentieth-century British Politics
Author: Keith Laybourn
Publisher: Psychology Press
Total Pages: 264
Release: 2002
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780415226769

Reflecting the changes within British society & politics during the 20th century, the entries in this book provide an overview of the lives & influence of 50 figures in modern British political history & chart the development of key issues.

British Policy towards France, 1945–51

British Policy towards France, 1945–51
Author: Roger Woodhouse
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 192
Release: 1996-02-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 1349243000

An account based on British archival sources of the search for a co-ordinated Anglo-French programme of economic recovery which would define the shape of postwar Europe. The pursuit of this goal is traced against the background of the Cold War, the provision of American economic aid and the revival of German industry. It is demonstrated how the emergence of these factors led France to turn instead to European integration on the model of the Schuman Plan.

Britain and the United States in Greece

Britain and the United States in Greece
Author: Spero Simeon Z. Paravantes
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2020-10-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1350142026

For the first time, Britain and the United States in Greece provides an in-depth analysis of Anglo-American diplomacy in Greece from 1946 to 1950. After Word War II, as Europe floundered economically, British Prime Minister Clement Attlee looked to disengage Britain from some of its broad international obligations and increase American support for its new foreign agenda. One place he sought to do so was in Greece. Spero Simeon Z. Paravantes reveals how the relationship between Britain and the US developed in this formative period, arguing that Britain used the fast-escalating tensions of the Cold War to direct US policy in Greece and encourage the Americans to take a more active role – effectively taking Britain's place – in the region. In the process, Paravantes sheds new light on how the American experience in Greece contributed to the formulation of the Truman Doctrine and the containment of communism, the structure of Greek institutions, and ultimately, the birth of the Cold War. Drawing on a wide range of sources from Britain, the US, Greece and the Balkans, this book is essential reading for all scholars looking to gain fresh insight into the complex origins of the Cold War, 20th-century Anglo-American relations, and the history of modern Greece.