Britain at Bay

Starred review from September 14, 2020
Allport (Browned Off and Bloody-Minded), a history professor at Syracuse University, delivers a sweeping first installment in a planned two-volume chronicle of Great Britain during WWII. He expertly sketches the cultural and social landscape of middle-class England in the 1930s; details political unrest at home (IRA bombings in Ulster) and abroad (the Arab revolt in British-occupied Palestine); and assesses Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain as a “dreadful judge of character.” After the 1938 Munich accords failed to contain Hitler, Winston Churchill came to power, the British troops were forced to evacuate Dunkirk, and France fell. Allport offers cogent and insightful accounts of the Battle of Britain, the Blitz, the first tank campaigns in Egypt and Libya, and bombing raids over Germany, and he sketches incisive portraits of key yet often overlooked political and military leaders, including conservative M.P. Leo Amery and Gen. Sir Archibald Wavell. Setting the stage for the next volume, Allport argues that three far-flung occurrences in the first week of September 1941 were key to England’s fate: a German submarine fired a torpedo at a U.S. Navy destroyer, a committee of British scientists was given the go-ahead to develop an “effective uranium bomb,” and Japanese strategists met to study the inevitability of war with the U.S. and Britain. Expertly researched and marvelously written, this sterling history casts an oft-studied subject in a new light.

September 15, 2020
The first of two volumes in which British historian Allport delivers his opinionated analysis that carries a modest whiff of revisionism. Though Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain sometimes gave the impression that he was "a weak and timid politician," Allport emphasizes that he was a combative, dynamic prime minister who considered himself "an acute judge of character and a sharp negotiator." The author condemns him for betraying Czechoslovakia to Hitler at the October Munich talks, but he adds that Britons dreaded repeating the slaughter of World War I. "Chamberlain's error was not to hate war," writes Allport, "but to assume that everyone hated it as much as he did." In fact, Hitler yearned to invade Czechoslovakia and eventually considered the Munich agreement a defeat. The author, a fluid, incisive historian, reminds readers that Chamberlain returned from Munich to almost unanimous acclaim. Despite his early denunciation of Hitler, Churchill, in 1938 "was seen by the nation as a reactionary Tory turncoat...who was widely unpopular and roundly distrusted." He was definitely not prescient in sharing (along with Chamberlain) the fantasy that mass bombing would determine a future war, so both starved the army to support the air force. The British look back on the "phony war" from September 1939 to June 1940 as a mistake--not of their own making--that concluded with the heroism of Dunkirk and then their "Finest Hour" while the French collapsed. Allport's provocative view will intrigue American readers, if not his countrymen, as he maintains that France's army was not demoralized, poorly equipped, or led by incompetents. French historians point out (to this day) that Britain intended for its ally to bear the brunt of the fighting and then held back its air force when the issue was in doubt, made the decision to evacuate without consulting them, and insisted that British troops take priority at Dunkirk. There followed a year of mostly defeats until Hitler's June 1941 invasion of Russia relieved the pressure. These are familiar events, but Allport's interpretation is superb.

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Starred review from November 1, 2020

In the aftermath of World War II, the British imagined themselves as an industrious, peaceful nation that wanted to be free of foreign entanglements, yet, when it mattered, met Adolf Hitler's challenge all alone. According to Allport (history, Syracuse Univ.; Browned Off and Bloody-Minded), this Tolkienesque "Shire Folk" myth, embraced by both liberals and conservatives, obscured the history of the UK. In this first of a two-volume series, Allport paints a rich and highly readable portrait of Britain in the 1930s; detailing civil unrest at home and abroad, middle-class fears, political disruptions, and foreign relations with European neighbors. Allport's reevaluation of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and Britain's appeasement policy places the abandonment of Poland and Czechoslovakia in a new light. The opening battles of World War II, including the Battle of Britain in 1940 and the Blitz in 1940-41 as well as the earliest battles in North Africa and the beginning of Britain's bombing campaign are given sharp and concise explorations that highlight the roles of lesser-known but vital figures. Insightful maps are an added bonus. VERDICT This thoroughly researched work will engage anyone interested in military, social, and political history of Britain during World War II.--Chad E. Statler, Westlake Porter P.L., Westlake, OH

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