Harold Macmillan presided over the dissolution of the British Empire and the first stages of irreversible economic decline. It was an unlucky end to a political career which had seen Britain's steady extinction as a Great Power, and his reputation will depend on how posterity judges his understanding of these changes, and his skill in adapting himself and his country to meet them. This short but trenchant study of his aims, abilities and achievements concentrates on the premiership, against the background of his political education and rise to power.