Baston Lewis Knihy

"Reginald Maudling, seen by the Observer in 1955 as 'a future Prime Minister', never fulfilled his early promise. In this, the first biography of Maudling, Lewis Baston presents a picture of a popular and respected politician, with a major influence on post-war Britain, whose career ended in scandal and ignominy." "In the 1960s and 1970s Maudling occupied a succession of high offices and was twice a candidate for the Conservative leadership. He was also a political thinker whose ideas influenced Tory politics for thirty years. He helped liquidate the British Empire, he was the unions' favourite Tory Chancellor, a permissive Home Secretary and an outspoken opponent of Margaret Thatcher. His position now seems well to the left of New Labour." "When Maudling failed to reach the top in 1965, the impact on him was devastating. His personal and business life started to go wrong and he lost his ethical moorings. He formed a business partnership with corrupt architect John Poulson and sought riches in the Middle East. When Poulson's corruption was revealed in 1972, Maudling resigned as Home Secretary. In the years that followed Maudling was investigated by the Fraud Squad (who wanted him prosecuted), bankruptcy investigators, the Department of Trade and Industry and the Inland Revenue. The true scale of his involvement in the Poulson scandal is revealed here for the first time."

An illuminating history of twenty-nine key borderlines that demarcate Europe reveals insights about the continent's past, present, and future. Europe's internal borders have seldom been 'natural'; instead, they have often been shaped by accident or force. The continent's map has been redrawn by various powers, including Napoleon, Alexander I, and Bismarck, but the current configuration largely stems from the Allies in 1919 and Stalin in 1945. In this exploration, writer and political historian Lewis Baston traverses significant borders from west to east Europe, delving into their histories. He examines how places and people recover from the scars—both physical and psychological—inflicted by a history of ethnic cleansing and division. Amid challenges like Brexit, COVID, and ongoing conflicts, Baston seeks a hopeful European future, discovering it in unexpected locales, from rural Ireland to the elegant coffee houses of Chernivtsi, Ukraine. This contemporary history resonates with readers interested in the complexities of Europe, offering a wry yet ultimately optimistic perspective from its edges, where the most pressing questions and contradictions arise—those very cracks where light breaks through.

A history of twenty-nine European borderlines from a political analyst and Tim Marshall's 'borders expert'.