A new edition of this best-selling history of Britain, from Roman times, now updated to cover the first decade of the 21st century.

The Oxford History of Britain tells the story of Britain and its people over two thousand years, from the coming of the Roman legions to the present day. Encompassing political, social, economic, and cultural developments throughout the British Isles, the dramatic narrative is taken up in turn by ten leading historians who offer the fruits of the best modern scholarship to the general reader in an authoritative form.

A vivid, sometimes surprising picture emerges of a continuous turmoil of change in every period, and the wider social context of political and economic tension is made clear. But consensus, no less than conflict, is a part of the story: in focusing on elements of continuity down the centuries, the authors bring out that special awareness of identity which has been such a distinctive feature of British society. By relating both these factors in the British experience, and by exploring the many ways in which Britain has shaped and been shaped by contact with Europe and the wider world, this landmark work brings the reader face to face with the past, and the foundations of modern British society.

This updated new edition (by the original editor) adds great richness by taking the story down from the economic crisis of 2008 to the conflict over Europe at the present day.

Britain since 1945: The People's Peace is the first comprehensive study by a professional historian of British history from 1945 to the present day. It examines the transformation of post-war Britain from the planning enthusiasm of 1945 to the rise of New Labour. Its themes include the troubles of the British economy; public criticism of the legitimacy of the state and its instruments of authority; the co-existence of growing personal prosperity with widespread social inequality; and the debates aroused by decolonization, and Britain's relationship to the Commonwealth, the US and Europe. Changes in cultural life, from the puritanical 'austerity' of the 1940's, through the 'permissiveness' of the 1960s, to the tensions and achievements of recent years are also charted.

Using a wide variety of sources, including the records of political parties and the most recently released documents from the Public Records Office, Kenneth Morgan brings the story right up to date and draws comparisons with the post-war history of other nations. This penetrating analysis by a leading twentieth-century historian will prove invaluable to anyone interested in the development of the Britain of today.

This is the only detailed and comprehensive account of the policies, programs, and personalities of the powerful and influential Attlee government. Based on a vast range of previously unpublished material, personal papers, and recently released public records, the book provides in-depth portraits of key figures of the period and compares Britain during these years with other European nations after 1945. In conclusion, Morgan assesses the legacy of this crucial administration for Britain, the western world, the new Commonwealth, and the Labour Party itself.

Originally published in 1971, this book traces the revival, triumph, division and decline of the British Liberal Party in the late 19th & 20th centuries. It does so by focusing on the career of David Lloyd George, itself the decisive agent for change in this period. The first part of the book is an extended critical essay; the second part consists of primary documentary material which is intimately linked to the commentary in the first section. The major phases of the period are covered: The tension between the Old Liberalism and the New; the challenges confronting the Liberal government of 1905-15; the impact of world war and Lloyd George's wartime premiership; the Lloyd George coalition in 1918-22 and the reasons for its downfall; and the slow decline of the Liberals between 1922 and 1929.

The last century has been a tumultuous one for the culture and politics of Britain. Kenneth Morgan's Twentieth-Century Britain is a crisp analysis of the forces of consensus and conflict that have existed in Britain since the First World War. Using a wide variety of sources, including the records of political parties and recently released documents from Britain's Public Records Office, Kenneth Morgan covers the full scope of Britain's modern history while drawing thought-provoking comparisons with the post-war history of other nations. This penetrating analysis by a leading twentieth-century historian makes for fantastic reading for anyone interested in the development of modern Britain.

This beautifully illustrated volume tells the story of Britain and its people over two thousand years, from the coming of the Roman legions to the present day.

Edited by esteemed historian Kenneth O. Morgan, this informative volume illuminates the political, social, economic, and cultural developments of the British Isles. Ten leading historians including Peter Salway, John Morrill, and Morgan himself provide a penetrating and dramatic narrative, offering the fruits of the best modern scholarship to the general reader in authoritative form, complementing their text with carefully chosen pictures and maps. A vivid, sometimes surprising picture emerges of continuous turmoil and change in every period of Britains history. By exploring the many ways in which Britain has shaped and been shaped by contact with Europe and the wider world, this comprehensive book brings the modern reader face to face with the past and thus the foundations of modern British society.

The new edition brings the story into the twenty-first century, covering the changes to British society and culture during the Blair years and examining the invasion of Iraq and its aftermath.

Originally published in 1971, this book traces the revival, triumph, division and decline of the British Liberal Party in the late 19th & 20th centuries. It does so by focusing on the career of David Lloyd George, itself the decisive agent for change in this period. The first part of the book is an extended critical essay; the second part consists of primary documentary material which is intimately linked to the commentary in the first section. The major phases of the period are covered: The tension between the Old Liberalism and the New; the challenges confronting the Liberal government of 1905-15; the impact of world war and Lloyd George's wartime premiership; the Lloyd George coalition in 1918-22 and the reasons for its downfall; and the slow decline of the Liberals between 1922 and 1929.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.

We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Kenneth Morgan has won wide acclaim as one of the finest historians of twentieth century Britain. His works have been hailed as history at its very best by New Society--the finest combination of rigorous scholarship and lucid, enjoyable writing. Now comes The People's Peace, the most comprehensive and authoritative look at post-war Britain ever written.
In The People's Peace, Morgan paints a richly detailed portrait of British social and political history from the end of the Second World War up through the rule of Margaret Thatcher. It was a time when the British, having pulled together to win what was called the people's war, looked forward to a people's peace--a peace of plenty and equality, provided by the Labour government's dramatic new welfare programs. But Morgan shows how the nation staggered under the debt of the war, struggling to rebuild its economy for a rapidly changing world. He examines Britain's fitful retreat from its imperial legacy, depicting the surprising popularity of the withdrawal from India and other colonies, and the shock of the Suez Crisis--when the U.S. made Britain's reduced role in the world painfully clear. Morgan also provides an insightful look at the changing popular culture, from the Teddy Boys to the massive adulation of the Beatles, as well as rising consumerism, permissiveness, and the ugly racism that met the tide of African, Asian, and Caribbean immigrants.
From the debates over the welfare state, to the Profumo scandal, to the disillusionment with Wilson's chaotic Labour regime (leading to rumors of a military coup), to the crisis of strikes and economic decline that brought Margaret Thatcher to power, Morgan provides a lucid narrative of Britain's post-war politics. Even after Thatcher's apparent revival of the U.K.'s vitality, he writes, it still remains a land of tremendous inequality, split between a decaying industrial north and a growing high-tech south, the Celtic fringe and English heartland, the well-paid and the unemployed--locked into decades-old patterns. In forty-four years, he writes, the British had yet to recover from victory in the Second World War, even though the Germans and Japanese had so manifestly recovered from defeat.

This text covers all aspects of the nation's history from political, social, economic and religious development to literary, intellectual, and sporting achievement.

This work inquires into those aspects of the career and ideas of David Lloyd George that have had special relevance to Wales. It deals primarily with his place in the history of modern Wales and the importance of his Welsh background in his career in British and world politics.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.

We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This book examines the pattern of political and social change in Britain during the period of the Lloyd George coalition government 1918-22, and provides a reassessment of this major administration and its importance for its personality, David Lloyd George.

In the wake of the Scottish vote on independence, questions of sovereignty, devolution, and local control have perhaps never been more salient. This book explores the evolution of the idea of national identity in modern Britain as it affected Wales. It ranges historically from the French Revolution and its aftershocks to the wide-ranging effects of World War I and on to present debates over decentralization and ties with Europe, while also offering close looks at key personalities, like Lloyd George, the first (and thus far only) Welsh prime minister. Drawing on both his extensive experience in politics and his decades of academic study, Kenneth O. Morgan has written what is likely to be the definitive work on this topic.