In the Shadow of the Dictators

Paul Corthorn is Lecturer in Modern British History at Queen's University, Belfast, having taught previously at the University College, Oxford. He is the co-editor of 'The British Labour Party and the Wider World' (forthcoming, I.B.Tauris).

'An elegant piece of innovative research on the Labour left between 1932 and 1939 [...] based on an impressive amount of research and on a perceptive and sensitive handling of the evidence collected.' - Professor E F Biagini, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History, University of Cambridge 'Paul Corthorn presents a detailed and nuanced study of the ideological and policy currents within ght ebRitish Left when faced witht he rise of fascism [...] In analysing the relationship between the international events and the ideological political struggle with Labour, Corthorn advances a new interpretation.' - Larry L Witherell, Professor of History, Minnesota State University 'This book reflects the enduring fascination that the foreign policy debates of the 1930s still hold for historians of British politics [and] is an engaging study that constitutes an excellent analysis of the Left's ideas [...] This is an impressive contribution to our understanding of the small groups who were so vocal in public life during the years before the Second World War.' - Robert Crowcroft, Lecturer in Contemporary History, University of Edinburgh 'In the Shadow of the Dictators claims to advance a new interpretation on established scholarship and succeeds by a close analysis of both the Left and the dictators and dictatorships that shaped the intellectual and rhetorical framework within which the Left worked in the 1930s. Corthorn has undoubtedly succeeded in this aim [... It] adds much to our understanding of this most interesting and complex of subjects.' - Labour History Review

• AcknowledgementsConventions and AbbreviationsIntroductionThe Aftermath of 1931: August 1931 to October 1934The Sanctions Crisis: October 1934 to October 1935The Fascist Advance: October 1935 to July 1936The Outbreak of the Spanish Civil War: July 1936 to January 1937The Forging of a United Front: October 1936 to January 1937The Unravelling of the Unity Campaign: January 1937 to May 1937The Final Shattering of Unity: May 1937 to March 1938The Approach of War: March 1938 to August 1939ConclusionNotesBibliographyIndex