The Fatal Lure of Politics

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This biography explores the life of Vere Gordon Childe, an Australian-born archaeologist and prehistorian (1892-1957). Initially active in the Australian labour movement, he authored How Labour Governs (1923), the first study of parliamentary socialism. Following World War I, Childe sought a scholarly path to escape the "fatal lure" of politics and the misguided focus of Australian labour on parliamentary representation. His influential career began in Britain with The Dawn of European Civilisation (1925), establishing him as a leading figure in archaeology and a distinguished mid-twentieth-century scholar. Childe aimed to "democratise archaeology," engaging the public in its practice and revealing historical narratives, as seen in his popular work, 'What Happened in History' (1942). Despite his academic pursuits, politics remained a significant part of his life, with British and Australian security services monitoring him for forty years. He supported Russia's "grand and hopeful experiment" and opposed fascism, driven by his Australian roots and a strong aversion to colonialism and imperialism. The biography traces the connection between Childe's early radicalism and his ultimate political actions in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, highlighting the integral role of socialist politics in his life and the historical theories it inspired.