Though he held the post of Prime Minister for the longest continual period between the premierships of Lord Liverpool and Margaret Thatcher, H.H. Asquith is a figure little known to many britons; a fact which Stephen Bates' enjoyable and helpful introduction to the man, should do something to change. Though the book is, at 140 pages, a brief work, Bates manages to discuss succinctly, many of the issues Asquith dealt with (and sometimes failed to); such as Irish home rule, a pension for the poor (an idea often wrongly attributed to Lloyd-George), and attempts to conduct the world war into which Asquith had been reluctant, but forced, to step. The wealth of topics the book deals with in its short span, mean that a few major points, such as Asquith's stubborn battle with the suffragette movement, are covered in rather too little detail; but on the whole, it can be said that Bates writes interestingly, informatively and concisely on the majority of the major issues of Asquith's political life.
In his portrayal of Asquith's personal life, Bates is also impressively even-handed, and provides some good evidence of Asquith's private character, through extracts from sentimental letters he would often write to female friends, especially those he found attractive; though these letters are purely platonic, and expose his kind persona well. This however, is balanced with good accounts of Asquith's drinking, an issue well-quoted from, using sources from his political and private life, and an issue Bates deals with fairly. In his portrayals of certain individuals though, Bates' work falls down a bit. Though the Conservative government and the House of Lords, of the early 1900s were both difficult and often obstinate, he too often polemically criticises them, and similarly his account of Liberal leader, and later PM Lloyd-George could not be more blatantly partisan and critical; which takes away from the book's general informative and neutral nature; with quotes on Lloyd-George, the Tories and the House of Lords being obviously selected to make a one-sided, negative portrayal of them. Still, for those looking for a good, readable, and enjoyable introduction to one of the lesser known, but very important Prime Ministers of the 20th century, I would definitely recommend Stephen Bates `Asquith'.
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