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Churchill reached Downing Street as France faced defeat. David Irving traces his rise, the Blitz and the search for American support in a sharply critical account ending in June 1941.
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In May 1940, Churchill reached Downing Street as the German offensive swept into western Europe. How had a politician so often out of office become Britain’s wartime leader? In The Struggle for Power, David Irving follows the ambitions, alliances and political battles behind that moment, then examines Churchill’s first year as prime minister.
The opening chapters trace Churchill’s early career before turning to the wilderness years: his writing and finances, opposition to Indian self-government, rearmament campaign and clashes over appeasement. The narrative follows his return to the Admiralty in 1939, the Norwegian campaign and the fall of Chamberlain’s government.
From the defeat of France and Dunkirk, the story moves through the Cabinet’s debate over continuing the war, the attack on the French fleet, the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. Relations with Roosevelt, the cost of American aid, secret intelligence and disputes with commanders run alongside the campaigns in North Africa, Greece and Crete. The volume ends on 22 June 1941, with Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union and Churchill’s pledge of support.
Drawing on diaries, correspondence, diplomatic messages, military records and interviews, Irving offers a sharply critical interpretation of Churchill’s leadership and its cost to Britain and the Empire. His arguments about motives and responsibility are the author’s interpretations. The book includes extensive chapter source notes and an index.
Hardcover edition of Churchill’s War, Volume I: The Struggle for Power by David Irving. This listing is for Volume I; the boxed special edition is listed separately.
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Author profile
David Irving is a renowned British historian and author of over 30 books. Known for his meticulous primary source research, he has spent decades in archives across the globe, unearthing diaries, documents, and first-hand accounts that have reshaped our understanding of the Second World War and its key figures.
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The order we suggest for David Irving's books: Hitler's War, then Churchill's War or the Goebbels and Himmler biographies, then Nuremberg, and the single-subject histories after that. Every edition, today's prices.
The concluding volume of Churchill's War is on preorder. Here is where the edition stands, what it is planned to cover, how the preorder works, and where to begin with the series.
From adjutant notes to Moscow diary microfiches, these primary sources show how David Irving built his major Second World War books from documents rather than summaries.
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HardcoverDavid Irving · Hardcover · 1051pp
An alliance under strain, a war turning in Britain’s favour. David Irving follows Churchill from June 1941 to Sicily in July 1943, through Pearl Harbor, Singapore and El Alamein. Jacketed hardback.
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Signed HardcoverDavid Irving · Signed Hardcover · 700pp
Churchill reached Downing Street faced defeat. David Irving traces his rise, the Blitz and the search for American support in a sharply critical account ending in June 1941. Signed hardcover copy.
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Signed Boxed HardcoverDavid Irving · Signed Boxed Hardcover · 700pp
Churchill reached Downing Street faced defeat. David Irving traces his rise, the Blitz and the search for American support in a sharply critical account ending in June 1941. Signed boxed hardcover.
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BundleDavid Irving · Bundle · 1773pp
From Churchill’s return to power to the landings in Sicily: the first two volumes of David Irving’s critical biography follow Britain’s war through July 1943. Two jacketed hardbacks, bought together as a set.
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