The Chamberlains, the Churchills and Ireland, 1874-1922

The Conservative, Lord Randolph Churchill, and the Liberal, Joseph Chamberlain, were prominent in Irish political affairs from the mid 1870s. Although on opposite sides of the House, they united in 1886 and again in 1893 to defeat the first and second Home Rule Bills. While ostensibly dissimilar in background, politics, and temperament, they were ultimately united in their common desire-to prevent an Irish Parliament in Dublin. The two sons, Winston Churchill and Austen Chamberlain, both entered Parliament with inherited Unionist views. However, changing political circumstances in Britain and Ireland led them to change their stance and adopt policies that would have been anathema to their fathers. In this thoroughly researched book, Ian Chambers weaves the rich history of this important political period, and vividly details how the actions of these four men influenced the course of British and Irish politics. "This book makes a distinctive contribution to our knowledge of British policy towards Ireland . There is originality in exploring the extent to which the opinions of the fathers were visited upon the sons, and there is abundant evidence of scholarship. The author has usefully consulted an impressively wide range of primary sources." - Professor Keith Jeffery (Ph.D., Cambridge University), University of Ulster at Jordanstown