Abstract
"Let's be frank about it, most of our people have never had it so good? (Harold Macmillan, 1957). To What extent did the dominance of the Conservatives between 1951 and 1964 rely on affluence and social change rather than politics? Following the 1945's General Elections defeat, no one would have expected to see Tories back in power in 1951. The ?Waterloo defeat' of the Conservative party in 1945 has often been explained by the fact that "in 1945, the party was out of touch with the egalitarian spirit of the people's war and not to be trusted to implement the proposals outlined during the wartime coalition.?
