Philip Guedalla

Philip Guedalla (March 12, 1889 – December 16, 1944) was a British barrister, and a popular historical and travel writer and biographer. He is remembered now mainly for a biography of the Duke of Wellington, and his wit and epigrams, one example being "Even reviewers read a Preface," another being "History repeats itself. Historians repeat each other." He also was the originator of a now-common theory on Henry James, writing that "The work of Henry James has always seemed divisible by a simple dynastic arrangement into three reigns: James I, James II, and the Old Pretender".

Family and education

Guedalla was born in Maida Vale, London into a secular Jewish family; in later life he embraced his Jewish identity. He was educated at Rugby School and Balliol College, Oxford, where he in 1911 was the President of the Oxford Union; and was published in Oxford Poetry 1910 – 1913. In 1919 he married Nellie Maude Reitlinger, the daughter of a banker. They never had children.^[1] Asked how to say his name, he told The Literary Digest "My own pronunciation is gwuh-dal'lah. I have very little doubt that this is wholly incorrect."^[2]

Career

Having been called to the Bar by the Inner Temple, Guedalla practised as a barrister from 1913 to 1923, before turning to writing. During the First World War he organised and acted as secretary to the Flax Control Board and also served as legal adviser to the Contracts Departments of the War Office and the Ministry of Munitions.^[3] In World War II he served in the Royal Air Force, with the rank of Squadron Leader.

Politics

Guedalla was a parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Party five times, always unsuccessfully. He first stood for Parliament as a Liberal at the 1922 general election in Hackney North in a straight fight with the incumbent Conservative Sir Walter Greene, MP. Greene held the seat with a majority of 4,615 votes.^[4]

At the 1923 general election Guedalla was adopted as Liberal candidate for the Derbyshire North East constituency. This looked as if it might be a winnable seat for the Liberals as at the general election of 1922 the Liberal candidate J S Holmes had come within 15 votes of taking the seat from Labour in a three-cornered contest. Despite the boost the Liberals had received in the run-up to the 1923 general election with the reunion of the Lloyd George and Asquithian wings of the party, Guedalla was unable to gain Derbyshire North East and fell to the foot of the poll behind the Conservatives. He tried again in Derbyshire North East at the 1924 general election but again came third behind the Tories in a three-cornered fight.^[5]

Guedalla next attempted to enter the House of Commons as Liberal candidate for Manchester Rusholme at the 1929 general election. This had been a Liberal seat between 1923 and 1924 having been held by Charles Masterman a former Liberal Cabinet minister. Guedalla maintained second place behind the sitting Tory MP Sir Frank Boyd Merriman but was unable to regain the seat.^[6] At the 1931 general election Guedalla moved constituencies again, this time to nearby Manchester Withington. This was a Liberal seat, held between 1923-1924 and 1929-1931 by Ernest Simon. However in the summer of 1931 an economic crisis led to the formation of a National Government led by prime minister Ramsay MacDonald supported by a small number of National Labour MPs and initially backed by the Conservative and Liberal parties. In many constituencies the main opposition party to Labour simply assumed the mantle of the Coalition government but in Manchester the Conservative and Liberal parties could not work together to agree an electoral pact, even in the unique circumstances of the national emergency.^[7] So Guedalla found himself opposed by Edward Fleming for the Conservatives who won the seat comfortably with a majority of 14,718.^[8]

Death

Guedalla died in hospital in London on 16 December 1944 at the age of only 55 years, having contracted an illness during his service in the RAF.^[9]

References

Works

• The Partition of Europe: A Textbook of European History 1715-1815 (1914)
• The Second Empire: Bonapartism, The Prince, The President, The Emperor (1922)
• Supers and Supermen: Studies in Politics, History and Letters (1922) essays Masters and Men (1923) essays
• Men of War (1923)
• Secret of the Coup D'État, The: Unpublished Correspondence of Prince Louis Napoleon, MM. De Morny, De Flahault, and Others, 1848-1852 (1924) with the Earl of Kerry
• A Gallery (1924)
• Napoleon and Palestine (1925) Arthur Davis Memorial Lecture
• Fathers of the Revolution (1926)
• Essays of To-day and Yesterday (1926)
• Palmerston 1784-1865 (1927)
• Conquistador: American Fantasia (1927)
• Gladstone and Palmerston: Being the Correspondence of Lord Palmerston With Mr. Gladstone 1851-1865 (1928)
• Bonnet and Shawl: Wives of Great Men (1928)
• The Missing Muse and Other Essays (1928)
• Mary Arnold (1928)
• Slings and Arrow: Sayings Chosen from the Speeches of the Rt. Hon. David Lloyd George (1929) editor
• If It Had Happened Otherwise (1931)
• The Duke (1931)
• The Queen and Mr. Gladstone (1933)
• Argentine Tango (1933)
• The Hundred Days (1934)
• Letters of Napoleon to Marie Louise (1935) introduction, with Charles de la Roncière
• The Hundred Years (1936)
• The Hundredth Year (1939)
• The Republics of South America (1937) a report by a Study Group of Members of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) Chairman of Study Group
• Idylls of the Queen (1937)
• Ragtime and Tango (1938)
• The Jewish Past (1939) Presidential address delivered at the Jewish Historical Society of England
• Mr Churchill (1941)
• The Liberators (1942)
• The Two Marshals: Bazaine, Pétain (1943)
• Middle East, 1940 to 1942: A Study in Air Power (1944)
• Still Life essays
• Ignes Fatui - A Book of Parodies