{"product_id":"h-hyde-montgomery-baldwin-the-unexpected-prime-minister-9780246640932","title":"Baldwin: The Unexpected Prime Minister","description":"Stanley Baldwin never expected to become Prime Minister; indeed he once confessed that he was in no way trained for the position which came to him by a string of curious chances. \u003cp\u003e When he succeeded Bonar Law in 1923, Baldwin had been in the Cabinet for barely two years and was little known in the country at large. His much better known rival, Lord Curzon, dismissed him contemptuously as 'a man of no experience and of the utmost insignificance'. But Baldwin proved to be the most potent political influence in Britain during the next fourteen years, becoming three times Prime Minister; Winston Churchill described him as 'the most formidable politician I have ever known in public life.' \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e The two biggest challenges to Baldwin's statesmanship were the General Strike of 1926 and King Edward VIII's determination to marry Mrs Simpson. Montgomery Hyde throws fascinating new light on the Abdication from hitherto unpublished documents to which he has had access with the Queen's permission. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e What was the secret of Baldwin's extraordinary hold on the House of Commons and the English people which maintained him in a position of supreme political power for so long in spite of frequent mistakes and setbacks? The research which Montgomery Hyde has carried out in the Baldwin Papers, the Royal Archives and other collections of source material has enabled him to give a convincing answer to this question. The result is a masterly biography by an experienced historian who himself possesses first-hand knowledge of parliamentary life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins Distribution Services","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53898288267606,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.momoxbooks.com\/products\/h-hyde-montgomery-baldwin-the-unexpected-prime-minister-9780246640932","provider":"momoxbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}