The Rise of Labour and the Fall of Empire
The Memoirs of William Hare, Fifth Earl of Listowel

Presents the memoirs of William Francis Hare (1906–1997), fifth Earl of Listowel.

H. Kumarasingham (Edited by)

9781108487610, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 4 July 2019

352 pages
22.3 x 14.4 x 2.3 cm, 0.56 kg

William Francis Hare (1906–1997), fifth Earl of Listowel, witnessed some of the most remarkable events in twentieth-century British history. Joining a small band of Labour supporters in the House of Lords in 1932 and later holding senior ministerial posts under Attlee he was at the forefront of Labour politics for over sixty years. Upon his death in 1997 he was the longest serving member of both the House of Lords and the Privy Council. Devoted to social democracy, 'Billy' Listowel was often a critical activist, including during the fall of Republican Spain, and as an eye witness on the calamitous road to the Second World War. His role as the last Secretary of State for India and Burma put him at the centre of the climactic end of Britain's Indian Empire and subsequent decolonisation. This volume presents his memoirs, charting the Rise of Labour and the Fall of Empire.

Acknowledgements
Editor's introduction
Preface
1. Origins and ancestors
2. Early life: 1906–1924
3. Student life: 1924–1932
4. Politics in the 1930s
5. Army life
6. Parliamentary mission to Australia and New Zealand: 1944
7. Deputy Leader, House of Lords, coalition government: 1944
8. Postmaster General: 1945
9. Secretary of State for India until independence: 1947
10. Secretary of State for Burma until independence: 1948
11. Minister of State for the colonies: 1948–1950
12. Governor General of Ghana: 1957–1960
13. The Molson Commission: Uganda and the lost counties of Bunyoro: 1961
14. The House of Lords: past, present and future
Appendix – selected correspondence between Lord Listowel and Lord Mountbatten concerning the end of British rule in India
Index.

Subject Areas: Second World War [HBWQ], Colonialism & imperialism [HBTQ], 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], British & Irish history [HBJD1]