The second volume of this outstanding political biography deals with Bevin's years as Minister of Labour during the war, when he was appointed by Churchill to mobilise Britain's manpower. The book is self-contained and gives an account of the political management of the war from a unique angle.

When Bevin became Minister of Labour in May 1940, Britain had neither the arms nor the men, it seemed, to avoid defeat. Over the next three years, Bevin transformed the manpower situation and achieved an unequalled degree of both industrial and military mobilisation. It was one of the biggest organising jobs ever undertaken by a British minister. Every issue he was concerned with--call-up, conscientious objection, direction of labour, conscription of women, wages and industrial disputes could have produced a major row at any time. Strongly defending democratic traditions, Bevin steadily refused demands for totalitarian measures as the only ones effective against Hitler and Mussolini.

In the present volume, Mr. Bullock deals with Bevin's labour policies and their results, his relationships with Churchill, Beaverbrook, and other cabinet colleagues, the politics of the coalition and the general election of 1945. Mr. Bullock has drawn on many original sources, including Bevin's own notes and correspondence; a final volume will cover Bevin's years as Foreign Secretary.