Books

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First World War

July 2013

A minority and the state

Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

This is a new paperback edition of Becky Taylor's history of Britain's travelling communities in the twentieth century. It draws together detailed archival research at local and national level to explore the impact of state and legislative developments on Travellers, as well as their experience of missions, education, war and welfare. It also covers legal developments affecting Travellers and crucially argues that their history must not be dealt with in isolation but as part of a wider history of British minorities. This book will be of interest to scholars and students concerned with minority groups, the welfare state and the expansion of government, as well as general readers and practitioners working with Travellers.

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Promoted Content

First World War

July 2013

A minority and the state

Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

This is a new paperback edition of Becky Taylor's history of Britain's travelling communities in the twentieth century. It draws together detailed archival research at local and national level to explore the impact of state and legislative developments on Travellers, as well as their experience of missions, education, war and welfare. It also covers legal developments affecting Travellers and crucially argues that their history must not be dealt with in isolation but as part of a wider history of British minorities. This book will be of interest to scholars and students concerned with minority groups, the welfare state and the expansion of government, as well as general readers and practitioners working with Travellers.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2012

A minority and the state

Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

'A minority and the state' is a much needed history of Britain's travelling communities in the twentieth century, drawing together detailed archival research at local and national level to explore the impact of state and legislative developments on Travellers, as well as their experience of missions, education, war and welfare. It also covers legal developments affecting Travellers and crucially argues that their history must not be dealt with in isolation but as part of a wider history of British minoritiesll. It will be of interest to scholars and students concerned with minority groups, the welfare state and the expansion of government, as well as general readers and practitioners working with Travellers.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

November 2015

The silent morning

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

Now available in paperback, this study of the cultural impact of the Armistice of 11 November 1918 contains fourteen new essays from scholars working in literature, music, art history and military history. The Armistice brought hopes for a better future, as well as sadness, disappointment and rage. Many people in all the combatant nations asked hard questions about the purpose of the war. These questions are explored in complex and nuanced ways in the literature, music and art of the period. This book revisits the silence of the Armistice and asks how its effect was to echo into the following decades. The essays are genuinely interdisciplinary and are written in a clear, accessible style.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

November 2015

The silent morning

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

This is the first book to study the cultural impact of the Armistice of 11 November 1918. It contains 14 new essays from scholars working in literature, music, art history and military history. The Armistice brought hopes for a better future, as well as sadness, disappointment and rage. Many people in all the combatant nations asked hard questions about the purpose of the war. These questions are explored in complex and nuanced ways in the literature, music and art of the period. This book revisits the silence of the Armistice and asks how its effect was to echo into the following decades. The essays are genuinely interdisciplinary and are written in a clear, accessible style.

More
Trusted Partner

First World War

November 2015

The silent morning

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

This is the first book to study the cultural impact of the Armistice of 11 November 1918. It contains 14 new essays from scholars working in literature, music, art history and military history. The Armistice brought hopes for a better future, as well as sadness, disappointment and rage. Many people in all the combatant nations asked hard questions about the purpose of the war. These questions are explored in complex and nuanced ways in the literature, music and art of the period. This book revisits the silence of the Armistice and asks how its effect was to echo into the following decades. The essays are genuinely interdisciplinary and are written in a clear, accessible style.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2013

Contesting home defence

Men, women and the Home Guard in the Second World War

by Penny Summerfield, Corinna Peniston-Bird

Contesting home defence is a new history of the Home Guard, a novel national defence force of the Second World War composed of civilians who served as part-time soldiers: it questions accounts of the force and the war, which have seen them as symbols of national unity. It scrutinises the Home Guard's reputation and explores whether this 'people's army' was a site of social cohesion or of dissension by assessing the competing claims made for it at the time. It then examines the way it was represented during the war and has been since, notably in Dad's Army, and discusses the memories of men and women who served in it. The book makes a significant and original contribution to debates concerning the British home front and introduces fresh ways of understanding the Second World War.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

November 2009

Poverty, philanthropy and the state

Charities and the working classes in London, 1918–79

by Katharine Bradley

This book looks at a number of charities in London between 1918 and 1979, and the ways in which they negotiated the growth of the welfare state and changes in the communities around them.These charities - the 'university settlements'- were founded in the 1880's and 1890's and brought young graduates such as William Beveridge & Clement Attlee to deprived areas of cities to undertake social work. It is of interest to those who wish to know more about the complexities of the relationships between charities, the welfare state and individuals in the course of the twentieth century. Bradley argues that whilst the settlements often had difficulties in sustaining their work with the vulnerable, they remained an important factor between the individual and the impacts of poverty. Aimed at scholars in the fields of history, social policy, sociology and criminology this book will also be of interest to practitioners in the voluntary sector and government.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2013

Priestley’s England

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

Priestley's England is the first full-length academic study of J B Priestley - novelist, playwright, screen-writer, journalist and broadcaster, political activist, public intellectual and popular entertainer, one of the makers of twentieth-century Britain, and one of its sharpest critics. From his scathing analysis of a slump-stricken nation in the best-selling English Journey, to his popular wartime broadcasts which paved the way to 1945 and the welfare state, his post-war critique of 'Admass' and the Cold War (he was a co-founder of CND), and his continual engagement with the question of 'Englishness', Priestley addressed the key issues of the century from a radical standpoint in fiction, journalism and plays which appealed to a wide audience and made him one of the most successful writers of his day, in a career which spanned the 1920s and the 1980s. Priestley's England explores the cultural, literary and political history of twentieth-century Britain through the themes which preoccupied Priestley throughout his life: competing versions of Englishness; tradition, modernity, and the decline of industrial England; 'Americanisation', mass culture and 'Admass'; cultural values and 'broadbrow' culture; consumerism and the decay of the public sphere; the loss of spirituality and community in 'the nervous excitement, the frenzy, the underlying despair of our century'. It argues that Priestley has been unjustly neglected for too long: we have a great deal to learn both from this extraordinary, multi-faceted man, and from the English radical tradition he represented. This book will appeal to all those interested in the culture and politics of twentieth-century Britain, in the continuing debates over 'Englishness' to which Priestley made such a key contribution, and in the life and work of one of the most remarkable and popular writers of the past century.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2013

Priestley’s England

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

Priestley's England is the first full-length academic study of J B Priestley - novelist, playwright, screen-writer, journalist and broadcaster, political activist, public intellectual and popular entertainer, one of the makers of twentieth-century Britain, and one of its sharpest critics. From his scathing analysis of a slump-stricken nation in the best-selling English Journey, to his popular wartime broadcasts which paved the way to 1945 and the welfare state, his post-war critique of 'Admass' and the Cold War (he was a co-founder of CND), and his continual engagement with the question of 'Englishness', Priestley addressed the key issues of the century from a radical standpoint in fiction, journalism and plays which appealed to a wide audience and made him one of the most successful writers of his day, in a career which spanned the 1920s and the 1980s. Priestley's England explores the cultural, literary and political history of twentieth-century Britain through the themes which preoccupied Priestley throughout his life: competing versions of Englishness; tradition, modernity, and the decline of industrial England; 'Americanisation', mass culture and 'Admass'; cultural values and 'broadbrow' culture; consumerism and the decay of the public sphere; the loss of spirituality and community in 'the nervous excitement, the frenzy, the underlying despair of our century'. It argues that Priestley has been unjustly neglected for too long: we have a great deal to learn both from this extraordinary, multi-faceted man, and from the English radical tradition he represented. This book will appeal to all those interested in the culture and politics of twentieth-century Britain, in the continuing debates over 'Englishness' to which Priestley made such a key contribution, and in the life and work of one of the most remarkable and popular writers of the past century.

More
Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2012

Priestley’s England

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

Priestley's England is the first full-length academic study of J B Priestley - novelist, playwright, screen-writer, journalist and broadcaster, political activist, public intellectual and popular entertainer, one of the makers of twentieth-century Britain, and one of its sharpest critics. From his scathing analysis of a slump-stricken nation in the best-selling English Journey, to his popular wartime broadcasts which paved the way to 1945 and the welfare state, his post-war critique of 'Admass' and the Cold War (he was a co-founder of CND), and his continual engagement with the question of 'Englishness', Priestley addressed the key issues of the century from a radical standpoint in fiction, journalism and plays which appealed to a wide audience and made him one of the most successful writers of his day, in a career which spanned the 1920s and the 1980s. Priestley's England explores the cultural, literary and political history of twentieth-century Britain through the themes which preoccupied Priestley throughout his life: competing versions of Englishness; tradition, modernity, and the decline of industrial England; 'Americanisation', mass culture and 'Admass'; cultural values and 'broadbrow' culture; consumerism and the decay of the public sphere; the loss of spirituality and community in 'the nervous excitement, the frenzy, the underlying despair of our century'. It argues that Priestley has been unjustly neglected for too long: we have a great deal to learn both from this extraordinary, multi-faceted man, and from the English radical tradition he represented. This book will appeal to all those interested in the culture and politics of twentieth-century Britain, in the continuing debates over 'Englishness' to which Priestley made such a key contribution, and in the life and work of one of the most remarkable and popular writers of the past century.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

November 2009

Telling tales about men

Conceptions of conscientious objectors to military service during the First World War

by Lois S. Bibbings

*Telling tales about men* explores some of the ways in which conscientious objectors to compulsory military service were viewed and treated in England during the First World War. In doing so it considers these men's experiences, their beliefs, perceptions and actions. Each of the six main chapters explores a different collection of ideas about objectors. Thus, they are, for example, portrayed as cowards, heroes, traitors, patriots, criminals, deviants, degenerates and upstanding, intensely moral men. Here the tales told draw upon sources ranging from diaries, government papers, tribunal records, newspapers, magazines and novels and are informed by writings from fields including literary studies, criminology, sociology and law as well as various branches of historical studies. *Telling tales about men* is essential reading for scholars in the fields of the First World War, pacifism, militarism and gender. It is also aimed at those with a general interest in the Great War and the military as well as in peace movements and pacifism.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2013

British Military Service Tribunals, 1916–18

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

Military Service Tribunals were formed following the introduction of conscription in January 1916, to consider applications for exemption from military service. Swiftly, they gained two opposing yet equally unflattering reputations. In the eyes of the military, they were soft, obstructionist 'old duffers'. To most of the men who came before them, they were the unfeeling civilian arm of a remorseless grinding machine. This work, utilising a rare surviving set of Tribunal records, challenges both perspectives. Wielding unprecedented power yet acutely sensitive to the contradictions inherent in their task, the Tribunals were obliged, often at a conveyer belt's pace, to make decisions that often determined the fate of men. That some of these decisions were capricious or even wrong is indisputable; the sparse historiography of the Tribunals has too often focused upon the idiosyncratic example while ignoring the wider, impact of imprecise legislation, government hand-washing and short-term military exigencies.

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Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2013

British Military Service Tribunals, 1916–18

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

Military Service Tribunals were formed following the introduction of conscription in January 1916, to consider applications for exemption from military service. Swiftly, they gained two opposing yet equally unflattering reputations. In the eyes of the military, they were soft, obstructionist 'old duffers'. To most of the men who came before them, they were the unfeeling civilian arm of a remorseless grinding machine. This work, utilising a rare surviving set of Tribunal records, challenges both perspectives. Wielding unprecedented power yet acutely sensitive to the contradictions inherent in their task, the Tribunals were obliged, often at a conveyer belt's pace, to make decisions that often determined the fate of men. That some of these decisions were capricious or even wrong is indisputable; the sparse historiography of the Tribunals has too often focused upon the idiosyncratic example while ignoring the wider, impact of imprecise legislation, government hand-washing and short-term military exigencies.

More
Trusted Partner

First World War

July 2012

British Military Service Tribunals, 1916–18

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

Military Service Tribunals were formed following the introduction of conscription in January 1916, to consider applications for exemption from military service. Swiftly, they gained two opposing yet equally unflattering reputations. In the eyes of the military, they were soft, obstructionist 'old duffers'. To most of the men who came before them, they were the unfeeling civilian arm of a remorseless grinding machine. This work, utilising a rare surviving set of Tribunal records, challenges both perspectives. Wielding unprecedented power yet acutely sensitive to the contradictions inherent in their task, the Tribunals were obliged, often at a conveyer belt's pace, to make decisions that often determined the fate of men. That some of these decisions were capricious or even wrong is indisputable; the sparse historiography of the Tribunals has too often focused upon the idiosyncratic example while ignoring the wider, impact of imprecise legislation, government hand-washing and short-term military exigencies.

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Trusted Partner

Humanities & Social Sciences

July 2016

British women of the Eastern Front

War, writing and experience in Serbia and Russia, 1914–20

by Angela Smith

This book explores the experiences of a range of women from the early days of 1914, through the big events of the war on the Eastern Front. Their diaries, letters, memoirs and journalism are used to investigate the extraordinary role played by British women during the fall of Serbia, the Russian Revolution and the final push, and their role in reconstruction following the Armistice. These women, and their writings, are examined through the multiple lenses of gender, nationality, patriotism, imperialism and legacy, but the book also tells the stories of individuals, and will appeal across audiences to students, researchers and general readers. This is the first book to examine the war in the East through the eyes of British women and as such makes an important contribution to First World War Studies. ;

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Humanities & Social Sciences

March 2016

War, disability and rehabilitation in Britain

'Soul of a nation'

by Julie Anderson, Bertrand Taithe, Penny Summerfield, Peter Gatrell, Max Jones, Ana Carden-Coyne

Through a series of thematic chapters, Julie Anderson explores the nature of injured and disabled bodies before, during and after the Second World War. Beginning at the end of the First World War and finishing with the publication of the Piercy Committee's report in 1956, the book examines medical practice, State support, societal attitudes and cultural meanings surrounding disabled war veterans and civilians. The book focuses on the embodied nature of the rehabilitative process, its gendered nature and the concentration on bodily fitness during the war. Using a series of case studies, this wide-ranging book seeks to understand the processes, methodology and practice of rehabilitation for those injured and disabled in war, and reflect on its adoption in post-war Britain. War, disability and rehabilitation in Britain will interest historians of medicine, war and disability studies. ;

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Trusted Partner

Humanities & Social Sciences

August 2016

Poverty, philanthropy and the state

Charities and the working classes in London, 1918–79

by Katharine Bradley

This book looks at a number of charities in London between 1918 and 1979, and the ways in which they negotiated the growth of the welfare state and changes in the communities around them.These charities - the 'university settlements'- were founded in the 1880's and 1890's and brought young graduates such as William Beveridge & Clement Attlee to deprived areas of cities to undertake social work. It is of interest to those who wish to know more about the complexities of the relationships between charities, the welfare state and individuals in the course of the twentieth century. Bradley argues that whilst the settlements often had difficulties in sustaining their work with the vulnerable, they remained an important factor between the individual and the impacts of poverty. Aimed at scholars in the fields of history, social policy, sociology and criminology this book will also be of interest to practitioners in the voluntary sector and government. ;

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Trusted Partner

Humanities & Social Sciences

June 2009

A history of the Royal College of Nursing 1916–90

A voice for nurses

by Susan Mcgann, Anne Crowther, Rona Dougall

This is the history of one of the largest nursing organizations in the world and one of the largest professional associations of women. The Royal College of Nursing began as a small professional association in 1916. Its work included nurses' education, professional policy and labour relations. It considers the history of nursing from political, social and economic points of view and sheds light on both gender relations and the position of women in the work place in Britain since 1916. The themes include the struggle to achieve professional status for nurses, the radicalization of nurses from the 1960s, the effect of immigration on nursing as a work force, gender relations within the profession and between nurses, their employers and other health professionals. This book will appeal to anyone interested in nursing studies, gender history and labour history. ;

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Trusted Partner

Humanities & Social Sciences

June 2017

Anarchism, 1914–18

Internationalism, anti-militarism and war

by Matthew S. Adams, Ruth Kinna

Anarchism 1914-18 is the first systematic analysis of anarchist responses to the First World War. It examines the interventionist debate between Peter Kropotkin and Errico Malatesta which split the anarchist movement in 1914 and provides a historical and conceptual analysis of debates conducted in European and American movements about class, nationalism, internationalism, militarism, pacifism and cultural resistance. Contributions discuss the justness of war, non-violence and pacifism, anti-colonialism, pro-feminist perspectives on war and the potency of myths about the war and revolution for the reframing of radical politics in the 1920s and beyond. Divisions about the war and the experience of being caught on the wrong side of the Bolshevik Revolution encouraged anarchists to reaffirm their deeply-held rejection of vanguard socialism and develop new strategies that drew on a plethora of anti-war activities.

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Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

Travellers in Britain in the twentieth century

by Becky Taylor

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

Culture and memory after the Armistice

by Edited by Trudi Tate and Kate Kennedy

Men, women and the Home Guard in the Second World War

by Penny Summerfield, Corinna Peniston-Bird

Charities and the working classes in London, 1918–79

by Katharine Bradley

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

J. B. Priestley and English culture

by John Baxendale

Conceptions of conscientious objectors to military service during the First World War

by Lois S. Bibbings

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

'A very much abused body of men'

by James McDermott

War, writing and experience in Serbia and Russia, 1914–20

by Angela Smith

'Soul of a nation'

by Julie Anderson, Bertrand Taithe, Penny Summerfield, Peter Gatrell, Max Jones, Ana Carden-Coyne

Charities and the working classes in London, 1918–79

by Katharine Bradley

A voice for nurses

by Susan Mcgann, Anne Crowther, Rona Dougall

Internationalism, anti-militarism and war

by Matthew S. Adams, Ruth Kinna

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