Continental Drift
Britain and Europe from the End of Empire to the Rise of Euroscepticism

A fascinating new account of Britain's uneasy relationship with the European continent from the Second World War to the present.

Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon (Author)

9781107071261, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 26 May 2016

601 pages
23.7 x 15.4 x 3.2 cm, 1.08 kg

'This is a timely book with a compelling objective. Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon explores the connections between the end of Britain's Empire and the growth of 'Euroscepticism'.' Helen Parr, The English Historical Review

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Churchill sought to lead Europe into an integrated union, but just over seventy years later, Britain is poised to vote on leaving the EU. Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon here recounts the fascinating history of Britain's uneasy relationship with the European continent since the end of the war. He shows how British views of the United Kingdom's place within Europe cannot be understood outside of the context of decolonization, the Cold War, and the Anglo-American relationship. At the end of the Second World War, Britons viewed themselves both as the leaders of a great empire and as the natural centre of Europe. With the decline of the British Empire and the formation of the European Economic Community, however, Britons developed a Euroscepticism that was inseparable from a post-imperial nostalgia. Britain had evolved from an island of imperial Europeans to one of post-imperial Eurosceptics.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part I. Imperial Europeans: 1. A world undone
2. Mr Churchill's Europe
3. Mr Bevin's response
4. The German problem
5. A disunited Europe
6. The continental surprise and the fall of the Labour government
7. The realities of government
8. Perfidious Gaul
9. The decline and fall of the imperial Europeans
Part II. Post-Imperial Eurosceptics: 10. At sixes and sevens
11. Towards the Common Market
12. The rise of the anti-marketeers
13. Empire eclipsed, Europe embraced, Britain rejected
14. Entering the promised land? Britain joins 'Europe'
15. Seasons of discontent
16. Half-hearted Europeans
17. Mrs Thatcher, John Major and the road to European Union
Conclusion: post-imperial Britain and the rise of Euroscepticism
Bibliographical note
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: 21st century history: from c 2000 - [HBLX], 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], British & Irish history [HBJD1], European history [HBJD]