Free Download Andrew Reekes, "Speeches That Changed Britain – Oratory in Birmingham: 1"
English | ISBN: 190503623X | 2015 | 158 pages | EPUB | 9 MB
Oratory that changed Britain – A fascinating and richly illustrated book exploring speeches made in Birmingham that changed history. Meet some of Britain’s most famous orators. This book takes a number of speeches, all made in Birmingham in the last two hundred years, and explores their impact on local and national stages. From the charismatic speakers themselves, to the words they used, the causes they fought for, and the mercurial relationship between orator and audience, author Andrew Reekes examines the factors that make a great speech. Many of the speakers considered were the most famous orators of their time, and their speeches illustrate contemporary concerns: from Thomas Attwood advocating Parliamentary reform in 1832 to crowds of 200,000; Feargus O’Connor addressing Chartist rallies; the Chamberlain dynasty, Joseph and Neville, opposing Home Rule and confronting Hitler; to controversial characters Oswald Mosley and Enoch Powell outlining their personal visions. The book closes with a very recent speech by David Cameron which continues the tradition of powerful speeches made in the city. Reekes paints a clear picture of Birmingham itself as a stronghold of radical politics and social reform, one that generated and attracted famous orators. Their presence has meant that Birmingham has played a profound role in setting the national political mood and agenda. Resonating with the text of these great speeches, Reekes’ fascinating and important book captures vividly a lost age of political oratory and passionate public advocacy, and provides an extraordinary insight into the progress of political and social reform in Britain across the last two hundred years. Author Andrew Reekes was a scholar of Exeter College Oxford. He was Sub Warden at Radley College, and formerly Head of History at Tonbridge, Cranleigh and Cheltenham Colleges. He was a Chief Examiner and school inspector as well as running two Prep Schools.
