Birmingham and the Chamberlains

For almost a century Joseph Chamberlain and his two famous sons, Neville and Austen, were prominent in national politics. Recording the Chamberlains' exciting designs for the city streets, grand public buildings and a new university, this book traces the ways in which the lord mayors of Birmingham changed the city where they grew up. The Chamberlains – father Joe and sons Austen and Neville – are probably the country’s best-known political family. Synonymous with Birmingham, they achieved both local fame and fortune and, with Neville’s appointment as prime minister, the highest national office. Together, they transformed late Victorian Birmingham into ‘the best-governed city in the world’. This book is richly illustrated with archive photographs from the Birmingham Central Library (located, of course, in Chamberlain Square) as well as political cartoons from national magazines such as Punch and local publications such as The Era, The Lion, The Dart and The Owl. Documenting the family’s far-reaching influence on their adopted home town, from their political and business legacies to the buildings, streets and memorials that now carry their name, it also aims to present a picture of the private lives of the family: their relationships with their spouses, children and extended family, their hobbies and interests, and the houses and gardens they lived in. Birmingham and the Chamberlains provides a fascinating insight into the Chamberlain’s legacy, and will delight anyone who has lived or worked in the city.