Staring at God: Britain in the Great War

by Simon Heffer

_______________________________' A brilliant The first serious and really wide-ranging history of the Home Front during the Great War for decades. Scholarly, objective and extremely well-written. Filled with surprising revelations and empathy. Heffer’s eye for the telling detail is evident on almost every page. A remarkable intellectual and literary achievement.' – ANDREW ROBERTS, TELEGRAPH_______________________________A major new work of history on the profound changes in British society during the First World WarThe Great War evokes images of barbed wire and mud-filled trenches, and of the carnage of the Somme and Passchendaele, but it also involved change on the home front on an almost revolutionary scale. In his hugely ambitious and deeply researched new book, Simon Heffer explores how Britain was drawn into this slaughter, and was then transformed to fight a war in which, at times, its very future seemed in question.After a vivid account of the fraught conversations between Whitehall and Britain’s embassies across Europe as disaster loomed in July 1914, Heffer explains why a government so desperate to avoid conflict found itself championing it. He describes the high politics and low skulduggery that saw the principled but passive Asquith replaced as prime minister by the unscrupulous but energetic Lloyd George; and he unpicks the arguments between politicians and generals about how to prosecute the war, which raged until the final offensive. He looks at the impact of four years of struggle on everyday life as people sought to cope with dwindling stocks of food and essential supplies, with conscription into the Army or wartime industries, with air-raids and with the ever-present threat of bereavement; and, in Ireland, with the political upheaval that followed the Easter Rising. And he shows how, in the spring of 1918, political obstinacy and incompetence saw all this sacrifice almost thrown away.Throughout, he complements his analysis with vivid portraits of the men and women who shaped British life during the war – soldiers such as Lord Kitchener, politicians such as Churchill, pacifists such as Lady Ottoline Morrell, and overmighty subjects such as the press magnate Lord Northcliffe. The result is a richly nuanced picture of an era that endured suffering and loss on an appalling scale but that also advanced the emancipation of women, notions of better health care and education, and pointed the way to a less deferential, more egalitarian future._____________________________' Staring at God is a vast compendium of atrocious political conduct. Refreshing. A trenchant history .' – GERARD DE GROOT, THE TIMES' A magisterial history' – MELANIE MCDONAGH, DAILY MAIL‘ Gloriously rich and spirited […] it zips along, leavened by so many wonderful cultural and social details.’ – DOMINIC SOUTHBROOK, SUNDAY TIMES‘Ambitious in its scope, content and approach. Masterly .’ – CHARLES VYVYAN, STANDPOINT‘Fascinating stuff.’ – SPECTATOR‘ Possibly the finest, most comprehensive analysis of the home front in the Great War ever produced .’ – LITERARY REVIEW‘Every bit as good as its two predecessors. Illuminating.’ – EXPRESS‘Absorbing’ – NEW STATESMAN

Genres: History, World War I, Nonfiction, Military History, British Literature

640 pages, Hardcover

Published September 19, 2019

About the author

Simon James Heffer is an English historian, journalist, author and political commentator.

Reviews

[Colin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the third in a series of four studies of Britain in the century from 1838 to 1939. Disappointingly, I found this a weaker book than the two preceding volumes, which were penetrating and illuminating.

'Staring at God' (an obscure title, based on a Margot Asquith quote) is of formidable length and some density, with very long and detailed chapters. But it is a primarily narrative account and very much 'top-down' i.e. focusing on the high politics, rather than the detail of what was happening in society from the point of view of the people. For all the density, the book is very light on the societal and economic changes of the war and, confirmed by the bibliography and references, ignores modern academic scholarship from the likes of Adrian Gregory and Angela Woollacott (to take two examples) of the way in which British society was shaped and changed by the war.

'Staring at God' could well have been written thirty years ago, for all the acknowledgement of current research and analysis, and so I do not think it should be regarded as a landmark in First World War historiography.

[Arjan Sandhu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heffer offers a rich and absorbing account of Britain’s experience during the First World War, tracing the path from the July Crisis to the Armistice. He brings together political developments, military strategy, and the shifting conditions on the home front with clarity and purpose, never losing sight of the human dimension.

The chapters on 1917 stand out, capturing the strain on British society as the war dragged on—rising casualties, deepening war-weariness, and the destabilising consequences of Russia’s collapse.

I found his portrayal of David Lloyd George to be one of the book’s more memorable elements. He emerges as a forceful and often calculating presence, a man of energy and flair, but also someone with a flexible relationship to the truth and a tireless desire to shape events in his favour.

Overall, I’d say it’s a must read for anyone interested in understanding Britain’s wartime ordeal.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

As you would expect from Simon Heffer, a very detailed and comprehensive history of the home front in WWI. I've read widely about the military war, but had no idea about the crises back in the UK. It's a wonder we even managed to get through with the ineptness of the politicians and inability of the Generals to adapt to the new ways of flighting. Thankfully no one in Germany or elsewhere really knew how to deal with total war either; it was the naval blockage, Germany overreaching itself in the final push and America coming into the war which forced the Armistice. The lessons of WWI surely positively influenced how the home front was managed in WWII.

[Brucen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Overly long. Initial chapter on the diplomacy leading up to the declaration of war was particularly tedious.

Focuses more on politics and political intrigue than the social history I had expected from the blurb.

Written very much from a right wing rather than a balanced perspective.

Author clearly detests Lloyd George, to the point where he looks for the negative in almost every one of his actions. There are many other more balanced critiques of Lloyd George.

[Philip Chaston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brought into focus the institutional and political shortcomings of UK during World War 1, especially their incomprehension of the Irish. Echoes of today in incompetence, sleaze and dishonesty. Rhyming history.

[Jonshanahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A magisterial treatment of the British homeland experience of World War I. So incredibly thorough though at times it seemed to wander into topical byways. Not for the faint-hearted - it’s a lengthy detailed narrative that can be exhausting at times.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very detailed, all-encompassing look at England (touching also on it's empire at times), largely on the home front, in the Great War. The third Simon Heffer book I've read, examining life in England in the Victorian era then in the lead-up to the Great War. I learnt plenty.

[T'Rev River · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful given the political landscape today.