Twelve Cities

by Roy Jenkins

In this evocation of twelve world cities which have been either intertwined with his life, or otherwise aroused his particular interest, Roy Jenkins follows up Churchill with a book of a very different shape, short and semi-autobiographical, but also full of the wit, erudition and carefully chosen illustrations which make Churchill such a success.

The cities are each described with a mixture of architectural interest, topographical insight, and personal anecdote. Jenkins has three British cities: Cardiff, which was the metropolis of his Monmouthshire childhood, Birmingham which he represented in Parliament for 27 years, and Glasgow, which he did not know well until he won a famous bye-election there in 1982, but which then aroused in him an enthusiasm far transcending politics.

There are four North European cities: Paris, of which his memories go back to 1931; Brussels, where he lived for four years as President of the European Commission; Bonn, not exactly a metropolis but the modest capital of the very successful West German polity for 40 years; and Berlin, surveyed from its Wilhelmine splendour, through its 1945 degradation to its reunification and architectural resurgence of the 1990s.

Then there are two South European essays on cities which both have a special and strong flavour - Naples and Barcelona. From Lord Jenkins's over a hundred visits to North America there emerge highly personal recollections of New York and a more objective view of the architectural sparkle of Chicago. Dublin, so near to home and yet so distant, makes up the dozen.

Genres: Travel

350 pages, Hardcover

First published October 3, 2003

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Roy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead OM PC was a Welsh politician. Once prominent as a Labour Member of Parliament (MP) and government minister in the 1960s and 1970s, he became the first (and so far only) British President of the European Commission (1977-81) and one of the four principal founders of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981. He was also a distinguished writer, especially of biographies.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Tony Fitzpatrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Roy Jenkins (1920-2003) wrote a memoir (published after his death) on the twelve cities he felt had been most significant and formative in his professional and personal life. This included Cardiff where much of his boyhood was spent, the UK cities he represented as a Labour and SDP MP (Birmingham and Glasgow) the European Cities formative in his early days as an MP and later as the President of the EU Commission (Dublin, Paris, Bonn, Brussels and Berlin), southern European cities that have made their mark (Naples and Barcelona), and two North American metropolis (New York and Chicago). Each chapter is very informative and describes history and development. The context of Jenkins' familiarity with each place is well presented. There is maybe too much focus on the quality of local restaurants, but knowing Jenkins's bon viveur reputation that is maybe to be expected. He has the irritating habit of summing up politicians, others, and buildings of which approves as being of "quality". Herr Bloggs was "a person of exceptional quality" for example. In this he comes across as a little of the snob, although he tries hard to rein this back when describing, for example, Birmingham's restaurant scene in the 1960s.

I do however agree with him when describing modern Parliamentarians... "Still more strongly, however, do I believe that the House of Commons, as it has become more full time and professional, has also become less interesting, less rewarding for its members, and therefore relatively less attractive to high talent than the media or the City, less of a national forum for exciting debates, and less of an effective check upon the executive."

Interesting read, but a bit of a slog to get through.