Political leaders & leadership
Showing 1–16 of 35 results
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China 1949
£14.99China 1949
The events of 1949 in China reverberated across the world and throughout the rest of the century. That tumultuous year saw the dramatic collapse of Chiang Kai-shek’s ‘pro-Western’ Nationalist government, overthrown by Mao Zedong and his communist armies, and the foundation of the People’s Republic of China. ‘China 1949’ follows the huge military forces that tramped across the country, the exile of once-powerful leaders and the alarm of the foreign powers watching on. The well-known figures of the Revolution are all here. But so are lesser known military and political leaders along with a host of ‘ordinary’ Chinese citizens and foreigners caught in the maelstrom.
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Churchill’s Shadow
£14.99Churchill’s Shadow
Winston Churchill towered over his own age, when he was variously described as ‘the saviour of his country’, ‘the leader of humanity’, or ‘the man of the century’. More remarkably, he has towered over fifty years and more since his since his death in 1965. He overshadows both his country, whose recent history has been called ‘an extended footnote to Churchill’, and the United States, where a great cult of Churchill has burgeoned. This account of Churchill’s life and afterlife has been more than ten years in the making. It is not a conventional biography but an account of Churchill’s long life, the cult that arose almost immediately after his death, and his place in popular culture, up to the Oscar-winning film ‘Darkest Hour’ in 2017.
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Command
£10.99Command
Al Murray’s passion for military history, and the Second World War in particular, has always been a duel passion with his comedy. It was brought to the fore with several acclaimed and award-winning television shows and the success of his podcast ‘We Have Ways of Making You Talk’ which he hosts alongside James Holland. The podcast has built up a loyal, nationwide fanbase and has given birth to its own annual three-day festival. In his first serious narrative book, ‘Command’ showcases Al Murray’s passion for this pivotal period in the 20th century, as he writes an engaging, entertaining and sharp analysis of the key allied military leaders in the conflict.
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Harold Wilson
£25.00Harold Wilson
Using previously restricted materials, Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds examines one of the most influential and successful politicians of the late 20th century, exploring Wilson’s rise to power via Clement Attlee’s post-war government, his relationship to Nye Bevan, whom he eventually replaced in the Shadow Cabinet, the close workings of his own inner circle, and the issues surrounding the first European Referendum. His biography considers previously overlooked aspects of Wilson’s life, such as the mysterious circumstances of his voluntary resignation and legacy in social reform. The book will offer a timely consideration of the advancement of social justice issues under Wilson’s government: homosexuality was decriminalised, abortion legalised and capital punishment abolished.
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Harold Wilson
£12.99Harold Wilson
Using previously restricted materials, Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds examines one of the most influential and successful politicians of the late 20th century, exploring Wilson’s rise to power via Clement Attlee’s post-war government, his relationship to Nye Bevan, whom he eventually replaced in the Shadow Cabinet, the close workings of his own inner circle, and the issues surrounding the first European Referendum. His biography considers previously overlooked aspects of Wilson’s life, such as the mysterious circumstances of his voluntary resignation and legacy in social reform. The book will offer a timely consideration of the advancement of social justice issues under Wilson’s government: homosexuality was decriminalised, abortion legalised and capital punishment abolished.
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In the Shadow of the Gods
£35.00In the Shadow of the Gods
For millennia much of the world was ruled by emperors: a handful of individuals claimed no limit to the lands they could rule over and no limit to their authority. They operated beyond normal human constraint and indeed often claimed a superhuman or divine authority. As an expert on empires and on Russian history, Lieven is brilliantly qualified to write a book that brings to life a system of rule that dominated most of human history, as well as some of history’s grandest and most dismaying figures.
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In the shadow of the gods
£14.99In the shadow of the gods
For millennia much of the world was ruled by emperors: a handful of individuals claimed no limit to the lands they could rule over and no limit to their authority. They operated beyond normal human constraint and indeed often claimed a superhuman or divine authority. As an expert on empires and on Russian history, Lieven is brilliantly qualified to write a book that brings to life a system of rule that dominated most of human history, as well as some of history’s grandest and most dismaying figures.
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Meeting Churchill
£16.99Meeting Churchill
This insightful portrait of Winston Churchill delves beyond well-known political moments, incorporating perspectives from various individuals who encountered him throughout his life. From Bletchley Park codebreakers to Hollywood stars, Harold Wilson to Gandhi, these lesser-known interactions reveal glimpses of the man behind the legend.
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Napoleon At Peace
£15.99Napoleon At Peace
The French Revolution facilitated the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte, but after gaining power he knew that his first task was to end it. In this book William Doyle describes how he did so, beginning with the three large issues that had destabilized revolutionary France: war, religion, and monarchy. Doyle shows how, as First Consul of the Republic, Napoleon resolved these issues: first by winning the war, then by forging peace with the Church, and finally by making himself a monarch. ‘Napoleon at Peace’ ends by discussing Napoleon’s one great failure – his attempt to restore the colonial empire destroyed by war and slave rebellion. By the time this endeavour was abandoned, the fragile peace with Great Britain had broken down, and the Napoleonic wars had begun.
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Personality and Power
£30.00Personality and Power
The modern era saw the emergence of individuals who had command over a terrifying array of instruments of control, persuasion and death. Whole societies were re-shaped and wars fought, often with a merciless contempt for the most basic norms. At the summit of these societies were leaders whose personalities had somehow given them the ability to do whatever they wished. Ian Kershaw’s book is a compelling, lucid and challenging attempt to understand these rulers, whether operating on the widest stage (Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini) or with a more national impact (Tito, Franco). What was it about these leaders and the times they lived in that allowed them such untrammelled and murderous power? And what brought that era to an end?
£30.00