RAB: The Life of R.A. Butler

Book excerpt: Richard Austin Butler remains the great enigma of post-war British politics. Independent, indiscreet and never anything but irreverent, Butler commanded the respect of both sides of the Commons and would have been, on several occasions, the people's choice for premier. From his entry into politics in 1929 to his retirement from that arena in 1965, Butler's story is also that of British political life through almost four decades. Scarred by his association with the appeasers of Munich, he won the respect of the nation as the architect of the 1944 Education Act. From the viewpoint of these times of Tory wets and dries, Butler appears the victim of the age that divided gentlemen from players. In these pages, one of our most distinguished political journalists offers a revealing portrait of 'the best Prime Minister we never had'.