Description
Book SynopsisThis is the second volume in The Official History of Britain and the European Community, and describes the events from 1963 up until the British referendum on the Common Market in 1975.
In 1963, General de Gaulle dashed Prime Minister Macmillan's hopes of taking Britain into the European Community (the Common Market). When Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson tried again, de Gaulle again said no'. Six years later, Prime Minister Edward Heath took Britain into the EEC. But by then the country was split and Harold Wilson, to keep the Labour Party from voting to leave, undertook to renegotiate Britain's membership. When Labour won the 1974 election that renegotiation culminated in the first nationwide referendum ever held in the United Kingdom.
The British people voted by two to one to stay in the European Community, but British membership has been controversial ever since. This is the story of why three very different Prime Ministers all concluded that, in the
Trade Review
"This is a useful addition to the existing literature on Britain and Europe. Such is the richness of the material, and the thoroughness of Wall’s account, that this is a book that will prove essential reading for anyone working on the troubled history of Britain’s attitude towards Europe. There is also plenty here for those more interested in the present and the future, but still sensitive to the importance and relevance of contemporary history." - N. Piers Ludlow, International Affairs, Vol. 88, 6, November 2012
Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. De Gaulle Says ‘No’: 1962-1963 2. Picking up the Pieces: 1963-1964 3. The Labour Government: a Toe in the Water: 1964-1966 4. Once More Unto the Breach: 1966-1967 5. We Will Not Take ‘No’ for an Answer: 1967 6. To Woo or to Win: Britain, France and Germany: 1967-1969 7. Dropping the Pilot and a New Hand at the Helm: The Start of Negotiations: 1969-1971 8. Good Thing, Bad Thing? The Terms of Entry and a Country Divided: 1971-1973 9. The Year of Living Dangerously: Britain’s First Year of European Community Membership: 1973-1974 10. Renegotiation and Referendum: 1974-1975 Notes on Principal People Mentioned
