Sidney and Beatrice Webb are the most important British contributors to the socialist tradition. They had a hand in founding many of the institutions that form the fabric of British society; notably the Fabian society, the Labour Party, the London School of Economics, the New Statesman , the Political Quarterly and Tribune. This is the first authorized biography of the Webbs commissioned by the Passfield Trustees; this life of the 'oddest couple since Adam and Eve' differs from previous studies in considering their literary and institution-building accomplishments and not just their personal idiosyncrasies.

In this book, Sidney and Beatrice Webb describe in detail how they conducted their investigations into social history and institutions.

Covers the period, 4 Jan. 1912-25 April 1912.

This early work by Beatrice and Sidney Webb was originally published in 1935 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'Soviet Communism: A New Civilisation? - Vol. I' is a work that details the social structure and principles of the USSR in the early part of the 20th century. Beatrice Potter Webb was born in Gloucester, England in 1858. Both her mother and brother died early in her childhood leaving her to be raised by her father, Richard Potter. He was a successful businessman with large railroad interests and many influential friends in politics and industry whose company the young Beatrice would become accustomed to. Upon reaching adulthood, Potter moved to London and helped her cousin, Charles, a social reformer, research his book The Life and Labour of the People in London. It was during this time that she was introduced to Sidney James Webb, who later became her husband and collaborator. The Webb's, together, wrote eleven volumes of work which arguably shaped the way subsequent scholars thought about sociology. They also collaborated on more than 100 books and articles on the conditions of factory workers, and the economic history of Britain, among other subjects.