Twentieth-century Britain: A Very Short Introduction

First published as part of the best-selling The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain, Kenneth Morgan's Very Short Introduction to Twentieth-Century Britain examines the forces of consensus and of conflict in twentieth-century Britain. The account covers the trauma of the First World War andthe social divisions of the twenties; fierce domestic and foreign policy debates in the thirties; the impact of the Second World War for domestic transformation, popular culture and the loss of empire; the transition from the turmoil of the seventies to the aftermath of Thatcherism and the advent ofNew Labour. Throughout, cultural and artistic themes are woven into the analysis, along with the distinct national experiences of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. The profound tension that shook the United Kingdom are juxtaposed against equally deep forces for stability, cohesion, and a sense ofhistoric identity.

Kenneth Morgan is Research Professor, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, and Lecturer in Modern History, University of Oxford. He was Principal, then Vice-Chancellor, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, and Professor in the University of Wales, 1989-95. Also, Vice-Chancellor, then Senior Vice-Chancellor, University of Wales, 1993-95.