Charles James Fox and William Pitt the Younger were the two political giants of their day - the greatest of orators, and the fiercest of rivals. But did the two men have anything in common? Each was a younger son of distinguished fathers, who themselves had been bitter rivals for power a generation earlier, and each came to prominence at a very young age. Temperamentally, however, they could hardly have been more different. Fox was genial, tolerant, gregarious, self-indulgent, rash, a reck...

Benjamin Disraeli and William Ewart Gladstone are without doubt the two most iconic figures of nineteenth century British politics. Their distinctly different personalities and policies led to 28 years of bitter political rivalry. Between 1853 and Disraeli's death in 1881, the two leaders repeatedly succeeded each other in Westminster, first as Chancellors of the Exchequer and later as Prime Ministers, with Disraeli leading the Conservatives and Gladstone the Liberals.For the first...

Dick Leonard’s Modern British Prime Ministers from Balfour to Johnson surveys the lives and careers of all the 24 Prime Ministers from Arthur Balfour to Boris Johnson in succinct, informative and entertaining chapters.Bringing to life the political achievements and personal idiosyncrasies of Britain's rulers over the 20th and 21st centuries, the author recounts the circumstances which took them to the pinnacle of British political life, probes their political and personal ...

Written by experts, this long-established and definitive guide to the workings of the European Union provides comprehensive, straightforward and readable coverage of this sometimes misunderstood and complex institution.This fully revised second edition explains not only what happens but why, analysing the EU’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as opportunities for it to be more effective. With the EU’s very existence under pressure due to Euroscepticism, continued crises with migra...

Dick Leonard’s British Prime Ministers from Walpole to Salisbury: The 18th and 19th Centuriessurveys the lives and careers of all the 32 Prime Ministers from Sir Robert Walpole (1721–42) to Archibald Philip Primrose, fifth Earl of Rosebery (1894–95), in 32 succinct, informative and entertaining chapters.Bringing to life the political achievements and personal idiosyncrasies of Britain's rulers over the 18th and 19th centuries, the author recounts the circumstances which to...