LSE

The London School of Economics and Political Science - the LSE - is one of the most famous academic institutions in the world. This history provides a lively account of the first century of a university which, from its beginnings has captured not only the minds of social scientists but also the imagination of a wider public. Written by an author who was closely involved as a student and later as Director of the School, it traces the story of the LSE from its `invention' by Beatrice and Sidney Webb, George Bernard Shaw, and Graham Wallas at a breakfast in August 1894, through its foundation in 1895, the travails of its early years, the triumphs of the Beveridge years between the wars, the great expansion of the post-war period, and the changing moods of the succeeding decades, including the `troubles' of 1968.