Attlee

Clement Attlee was the Labour leader from 1935 to 1955, and Prime Minister of the first majority Labour governments in the postwar years from 1945 to 1951. This study examines the man behind the stern exterior, finding ambition and indecision, and a moral vision.

---

Attlee is undoubtedly one of the key figures in modern British history. An important figure in Churchill's War Cabinet, and premier of the first majority Labour Government, he created the Welfare State, nationalised a substantial part of industry and secured the independence of India. Yet his political stature remains unresolved. Was he Churchill's "modest man with much to be modest about" who squandered the fruits of victory, or, as many now claim, one of the truly great prime ministers? Robert Pearce's lucid and drily amusing study goes behind the stern exterior to find ambition and indecision, and a uniquely moral vision.