Another World, 1897 - 1917

by Anthony Eden

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Genres: World War I, British Literature, Death, Memoir, Autobiography, History, Nonfiction

175 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1977

About the author

Instrumental British politician Sir Robert Anthony Eden, first earl of Avon, as foreign minister from 1935 to 1938, from 1940 to 1945, and from 1951 to 1955 founded the United Nations in 1945 and as prime minister from 1955 to 1957 supported the Anglo-French invasion of Egypt in 1956.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony...

Reviews

[Mikey B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Indeed, it was “another world” that Anthony Eden was raised in at the Windlestone estate, but it wasn’t a world that I was interested in. The book is in two parts – the first his upbringing prior to the outbreak of World War I which I found boring – and then his experiences in France during the war. I found a rather detached atmosphere to the entire book.

The latter half on what he did in France during the war was somewhat better, however this kind of war autobiography has been done abundantly by many other writers and there was noting exceptional in what Anthony Eden offered.

I will now re-read his memoir “The Reckoning” on his role in government during the Second World War which I know to be much better.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I stood at the ha-ha and looked across to the elm tree my father had painted so often, and beyond to the rolling countryside, I wondered if ever again I could see them free from the memory of those other, shell-torn trees, twisted wire and heaped and silent bodies.”

Normally, I am not one for using quotes to imply an opinion about a book, but in this instance I’m cutting myself some slack.

The premise of this autobiography is simple: Anthony Eden’s life before and during the First World War. The real strength of this book is this second part, however credit must be given to the initial stages where Eden vividly describes his close bonds with his family and siblings in particular, some of whom he would lose in the conflict that would change the world.

Whilst much of the sentiment expressed about the author’s experience in the Great War is not unique, many before him and many after him would write about the boredom, the revulsion and endless dead etc. at the same time, this is unique. These are the words of a future Prime Minister. Eden’s reputation has been tarnished (I believe somewhat unfairly) by Suez. If you ask anyone who knows anything about him, it’s Suez that they know. This book, I believe, is important because it reminds us of who he was and how he got there. The Great War was such a formative experience for entire generations and therefore Anthony Eden’s later career was inevitably impacted by his experiences in it. The greatest strength of this book is that it’s author allows himself to display vulnerability. The evident sadness and dejection at the loss of his brothers, both literal and brothers in arms, is harrowing to see. Whilst this is not the best written autobiographical account of the Great War, it is, to my mind, one of immense value- it shows the war touched everyone and would continue to do so for decades to come.


4/5*

[Lazette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another World: 1897 to 1917 by Anthony Eden[return][return][return][return]By the time I finished reading this book, I had begun to think that the word 'Elegy' ought to have appeared somewhere in the title. I doubt that more than five pages pass at any time without him marking the death of another person -- and far too many of them in World War I where he lost brothers, cousins, uncles and friends. Even the opening -- where he is returning to the home he knew as a child -- is a moment of loss as we see the huge, old building going to ruin.[return][return]That makes this a melancholy book to read, and yet there is something about Anthon Eden (Lord of Avon) and his acceptance of all that happened, that makes this less painful than it otherwise would have been. Even his description of living in the trenches during World War I, while informative seemed distant. And yet it as a moving book -- powerful perhaps, in its lack of sentimentality and its straight-forward approach to horrific and horrible events. [return][return]From his father's obsession with modern art to his days in the trenches in Somme, a reader can see, piece by piece as the old world slips away. His closing lines, perhaps, best explain the changes:[return][return]"...I emerged tempered by my experience and bereft of many friends, but with my illusions intact, neither shattered nor cynical, to face a changed world."[return][return][return][return]This short, well-written book is an excellent glimpse into the world of British aristocracy at the turn of the century. It's filled with insights about the links that stretched across the Europe, and about how badly many of them miscalculated the situation with Germany. From a protected childhood to days in the trenches at the battle of Somme, this narrative does carry the reader easily through a passage when the world did, indeed, change.

[Anne White · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really a minor classic.

The first part deals with the author's childhood and it's a delightful mix of "Mary Poppins" and "Downton Abbey".
It recounts in a playful tone and with a good deal of self-irony, which I suppose is one of old-age's benefits, the amenities and extravagances of the Edwardian country aristocracy.
It is on the whole a lovely portait, with some shadows, but also with peaks of pure comedy such as the "barometer incident" where the author's father behavior is whort of the Münchhausen's baron.

The second part hits a very different note, the war and its horrors are the dominant themes.
It is a somber account, slightly emotional; from the first casualty, to the final slaughter every loss feels painfully personal.
There is courage, but there is also fear, and above all there's a great humanity.
An incident in which the author gives his overcoat to cover a wounded soldier, is stuck in my mind.
Some passages are poingiant, with streaks of poetry.
In the end I could scarcely hold back my tears.
What a national treasure he was, so unfair his legacy has to be Suez.

[Jens Hansen]

Definitely deserving the praise it received on publication

[Jim Bogue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthony Eden had a long and mostly distinguished career in British government, ending as Prime Minister. This is his story written in 1967 in retirement, of his youth and service in WWI. It is an extraordinary story of an extraordinary time.
Anthony was the third son and fourth child of a wealthy noble family. His father supervised the estate and painted, his mother did charitable works. He was raised by governesses, tutored by French and German ladies, and lived an (at least in his memory) idyllic life. He naturally went to Eton. But his father, a good deal older than his mother, fell ill and died. And war came.
Anthony of course volunteered, joining at the age of 17 a regiment led by a friend of the family, in a brigade mostly recruited from near his home. He quickly became an acting, then real lieutenant. Perhaps the best part of this short memoir is his stories of life on the line. By 1916 his oldest and youngest brothers had both died in action, but he was too busy, and often exhausted, to grieve overly. The book basically ends when he is promoted, at age 20, to major.
It was a very different world that the future Earl of Avon grew up in; he loved it, though not the war part, and recounts its history well.

[Yooperprof · Rating 4 out of 5]

More interesting than I thought it would be. For some reason, I had thought of Eden's background being that of middling country gentry, or perhaps even professional upper middle class, but this memoir makes it clear that his family was mid-level aristocratic in wealth and outlook, perhaps one level below that of the plutocratic Londonderrys - who were near neighborhoods in England's North. It's true that his father squandered the family millions, so to speak, but Eden's early years and adolescence certainly were ones of extreme wealth and privilege. (Eden was considerably higher in social class than his successor Harold MacMillan, even though MacMillan did score the "coup" of marrying a Duke's daughter.)

Also interesting for its detailed though detached account of Eden's harrowing service on the Western Front - as a young (very young) junior officer in 1916 and 1917. He was just 19!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

It really was another world. An interesting read of his first 20 years. Ever since I found out that he was the youngest adjutant and Brigade Major in WWI, I wanted to read more about him.