From the playing fields of Eton via the horrors of the Western Front to the pinnacle of political power in 20th-century Britain -- a brilliant collective biography of Harold Macmillan, Lord Salisbury, Oliver Lyttleton and Harry Crookshank. / A brilliant work of sweeping historical range -- an extremely impressive debut. / Extremely well-reviewed in hardback, it became one of the most highly regarded biggest political biographies of the year.
Simon Ball studied at Brasenose College, Oxford
and Christ’s College, Cambridge. He teaches
history at the University of Glasgow. The Guardsmen was published
to critical acclaim in 2004.
'I read every page, every line of this very long book with sustained interest and pleasure ... It is a magnificent achievement ... A product of superb scholarship and profound insight and written in a style both incisive and flowing, this is a book for every taste and for the politically minded of every age group. I cannot recommend it too highly.' Peregrine Worsthorne, Spectator 'The Guardsmen is a magnificent achievement. By following the careers of four friends and competitors through Eton, Oxford, the Guards, and into politics, it explores British political and social history in the first two-thirds of the twentieth century. It is a work of consummate scholarship, lightly borne, but above all rendered in a prose that is consistently deft and readable. Simon Ball is a historian at the height of his powers.' Hew Strachan, Chichele Professor of the History of War, University of Oxford 'Through skilfull stitching of threads from personal and official papers, Ball has woven a superb panoramic tapestry of 20th-century Conservative politics ... Compelling.' Sunday Times 'The Guardsmen is an accomplished work. Simon Ball has command of his subject matter and demonstrates an assured touch with primary material that has not appeared in previous biographies and memoirs.' Literary Review 'The Guardsmen is good reading because political warfare is at its centre, and Ball skilfully evokes that inter-war world ... A stylish book.' Daily Telegraph
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