King's Contemporary British History are delighted to invite you to the launch of Blue Jerusalem by Kit Kowol. Published by Oxford University Press (OUP), Blue Jerusalem is a 'radical re-interpretation of British history and British Conservatism between 1939 and 1945' which 'reveals the bold, at times utopian, plans British Conservatives drew up for Britain and the post-war world.'

Kit Kowol will be joined in conversation by leading historians of Britain to discuss his new book and its implications for our understandings of British history. This will be followed by a drinks reception.

Tickets are free, but booking is essential. The launch will be held in the Open Space, History Department, 8th Floor, Strand Building, King's College London.

Blue Jerusalem: British Conservatism, Winston Churchill, and the Second World War

From proposals for world government to a more united Empire via dreams of a new Christian elite and a move back-to-the-land, Blue Jerusalem reveals how Conservatives were every bit as imaginative and courageous as their Labour and left-wing opponents in their wartime plans for a post-war world. Bringing these alternative visions of Britain's post-war future back to life, Blue Jerusalem restores politics to the centre of the story of Britain's war. It demonstrates how everything from the weapons Britain fought with, to the theatres in which the fighting took place and the allies Britain chose were the product of political decisions about the different futures Conservatives wanted to make.

Rejecting notions of a 'people's war' that continue to cloud how we think of World War II, it explores how the Tories used their control of the home and battle front to fight a deeply Conservative war and build the martial, imperial, and Christian nation many that many of a Conservative disposition had long dreamed of. A study of political thinking as well as political manoeuvre, Blue Jerusalem goes beyond an examination of the usual suspects - such as Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain - to reveal a hitherto lost world of British Conservativism and a set of forgotten futures that continue to shape our world.

Blue Jerusalem will be published by OUP on 12 September, and more information can be found here.