ALLIES AT WAR – TIM BOUVERIE IN CONVERSATION WITH SAVILIAN HENRY WHORWOOD

In his new book, Allies at War: The Politics of Defeating Hitler, bestselling historian, Tim Bouverie, examines the often-fractious alliance that conquered the Axis.  The Grand Alliance was an improbable and incongruous coalition, divided by ideology and politics and riven with mistrust and deceit. Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin were partners in the fight to defeat Hitler, yet they were also rivals who disagreed on strategy, imperialism and the future of liberated Europe. Only by looking at their points of conflict, as well as of co-operation, are we able to understand the course of the war and world that developed in its aftermath.

Described as ‘an astonishing piece of scholarship’ by James Holland, ‘a masterpiece…that is a pleasure to read’ by Richard J. Evans and ‘the best book I have ever read on  the politics of the Second World War’ by Tim Shipman, Allies at War is a fast-paced, narrative history, based on material drawn from over 100 archives, that uses vivid first-hand accounts and unpublished diaries, to take readers into the rooms where the critical decisions were made, while going beyond the confines of the Grand Alliance to examine, among other aspects, the doomed Anglo-French alliance, fractious relations with General de Gaulle and the Free French, and interactions with Poland, Greece and Nationalist China.

In what promises to be a fascinating discussion, Tim will offer a fresh perspective on the Second World War and the origins of the Cold War.

Tim Bouverie is the author of the Sunday Times bestseller and New York Times Editor’s Pick, Appeasement: Chamberlain, Hitler, Churchill and the Road to War, shortlisted for the Orwell Prize. He studied history at Christ Church Oxford and was the 2020-21 Alistair Horne Fellow at St Antony’s College, Oxford.  His new book, Allies at War: The Politics of Defeating Hitler was an instant bestseller and was described by the Wall Street Journal as ‘enthralling and authoritative…deeply researched and gracefully written’ and by the Economist as, ‘Masterful…packed with fresh detail and gossipy anecdotes.’ 

Henry Whorwood was at Oxford with Tim and has been a member of the Savile since 2023.