1886-1895
The Liberal Party, Unionism and political culture in late 19th and early 20th century Britain
A one-day seminar organised by Newman University College and the Journal of Liberal History. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw great changes in British political culture. The gradual emergence of a mass electorate informed by a popular press, debates about the role of the state in social policy, Imperial upheavals and wars all…
I blame Sir Edward Grey
Review of John Charmley, Splendid Isolation? Britain and the Balance of Power 1874-1914 (Hodder & Stoughton, 1999).
Out from under the umbrella
The defection of the Liberal Unionists in 1886 was the greatest blow the Liberal Party suffered in the nineteenth century. This article explains what happened and suggests that there are still some unanswered questions.
‘There are things stronger than parliamentary majorities
Review of Alan O’Day, Irish Home Rule 1867-1921 (Manchester University Press, 1998).
The evolution of devolution
Analysis of the lessons from the first Home Rule Bill of 1886.
Gladstonian Liberalism according to Gladstone
What were the prevailing principles of the Liberal Party in the late Victorian period?
Lib-Labs
The first working class representatives within Parliament were known as "Lib-Lab" MPs. They accepted the Liberal whip while exercising the right to utilise their experience to speak freely on labour issues.
Sir Edward Grey (Viscount Grey of Fallodon), 1862-1933
Sir Edward Grey, third Baronet and first Viscount Grey of Fallodon, was the longest serving Foreign Secretary of the twentieth century, guiding Britain’s foreign policy in 1905-16. In the 1920s, he was a prominent voice on foreign affairs, and a strong supporter of Asquithian Liberalism. Grey’s importance to British politics as Foreign Secretary lay in…
Herbert Gladstone (Viscount Gladstone), 1854-1930
Herbert John, Viscount Gladstone, was the fourth and youngest son of William Ewart Gladstone and his wife Catherine. He was born on 7 January 1854 at 12, Downing Street (now No. 11), which his father then occupied as Chancellor of the Exchequer. He was thus born at the heart of politics, and remained there for most…