I.

Introduction

Clement Attlee (1883-1967), British statesman and Prime Minister (1945-1951), leader of the first Labour government to serve a complete term and during whose premiership the welfare state was established.

Attlee was born in Putney, London, the son of a successful solicitor. He grew up in a Christian and philanthropic household. He was sent to Haileybury, a Hertford public school, and went on to University College, Oxford. He trained as a barrister, but practised law only briefly. With a private income he was able to devote his time to social work in the East End of London. From 1912 he was a tutor in social services at the London School of Economics.