Parliament and Politics in the Age of Churchill and Attlee
The Headlam Diaries 1935–1951

The private diary of a senior Conservative Member of Parliament during the Second World War.

Stuart Ball (Edited by)

9780521661430, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 24 July 2000

680 pages
22.4 x 14.7 x 4 cm, 0.988 kg

'The diaries nevertheless make major contributions in particular areas. The treatment of constituency politics is fascinating.' Twentieth Century British History

This volume publishes the private diary of a senior Conservative Member of Parliament, Sir Cuthbert Headlam, during the period of the Second World War. Clearly written and highly readable, it gives a fascinating inside view of British public life in those years. Because of its length and coverage, this political diary is uniquely important. It covers the period of 'appeasement' and the coming of the war, the conflict itself, and post-war Labour government and the development of the Cold War. It has much to say about figures such as Winston Churchill, Anthony Eden and Harold Macmillan.

Acknowledgements
Abbreviations
Map of constituencies in the Northern Area
Introduction
North Area Chairman: November 1935 to August 1937
Appeasement and Munich: September 1937 to October 1938
The approach of war: November 1938 to August 1939
The phoney war: September 1939 to May 1940
Return to Parliament: May to October 1940
Winston's war: October 1940 to June 1941
The invasion of Russia: June to December 1941
Dark days: December 1941 to May 1942
'As bad as ever': May to October 1942
The tide begins to turn: November 1942 to May 1943
The Allies advance: May to December 1943
The Second Front: January to September 1944
The revival of party politics: September 1944 to March 1945
Labour landslide: March to October 1945, May to July 1946
Opposition and crisis: January to July 1947
Reshaping the Party: July to December 1947
The Cold War: January to July 1948
Waiting for the Tory revival: January 1949 to June 1949
Devaluation and deselection: June 1949 to February 1950
The last Parliament: March to May 1950, January to February 1951.

Subject Areas: Second World War [HBWQ], British & Irish history [HBJD1], Diaries, letters & journals [BJ]