The Strange Death of Tory England
 |
|
| Author | Geoffrey Wheatcroft |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Political commentary |
| Publisher | Allen Lane, London |
|
Publication date
|
31 Mar 2005 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 336 |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 59208118 |
| Preceded by | The Controversy of Zion (1996) |
The Strange Death of Tory England is a book of political commentary by the journalist Geoffrey Wheatcroft, published in 2005.
In the run-up to the United Kingdom general election of 2005, Wheatcroft looks at the journey of the British Conservative Party, from being the country's most successful political party of the 20th century to its wilderness of a long period in opposition, by way of Margaret Thatcher's heyday and her fall from power and the quite different style of John Major.
The book begins with the Conservative leadership contest of 1963, following the resignation of Harold Macmillan, which turned into a fight between Iain Macleod, the modernising chairman of the party, and the Earl of Home, the aristocratic dark horse. Home won, disclaimed his peerage, became Alec Douglas-Home and was elected to the House of Commons at a hastily arranged by-election. Wheatcroft depicts this contest as a clash between supporters of "the virtues of an hereditary governing class" and those of "worth proved by ability".
Next comes a history of the party from its 17th-century beginnings, at the time of the Restoration, followed by an account of the Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson and Edward Heath years and Britain's trials and tribulations of the 1970s, which culminated in the election of Margaret Thatcher's first government in 1979.
Within a few years, while holding onto power, the party began to split and fall apart. Wheatcroft seeks to explain this decline by offering factors long discussed by commentators: internal splits over Britain's place in Europe, political sleaze, a fundamental lack of ideology and a growing desire in the country for change after eighteen years of Conservative rule, coinciding with Tony Blair's "brilliant cynical sincerity".
...
Wikipedia