The Alternative

Oswald Mosley considered 'The Alternative' to be the magnum opus of his writings. It was also his message to posterity. Its publication not only marked the inauguration of Union Movement, his post-War political party, but the launch of his master concept of 'Europe a Nation' that remained the enduring theme of the rest of his life. This was Mosley's vision of a United Europe stretching from the Urals to the Atlantic that, he contended, would become the most powerful, prosperous and beneficent civilisation the world had ever seen. Mosley's Europe had little in common with the present European Union. The year of its conception was 1947, long before anybody else began to talk about European statehood. Essentially, he wanted Europe to speak with one voice on what mattered - defence, foreign affairs and economic policy - whilst leaving all other matters to local government. In this way, the cultural integrity of the regions would be maintained whilst United Europe became the pre-eminent world order. In 'The Alternative' Mosley also calls for the emergence of a new type of political leader: the Thought-Deed Man, or Soldier Poet, who could both think and act. He concludes with his greatest contribution to philosophy in which he interprets the meaning of life expressed in his Doctrine of Higher Forms.