Carlton Club meeting, 19 October 1922
Encyclopedia
The Carlton Club meeting on 19 October 1922 was a formal meeting of Members of Parliament
who belonged to the Conservative Party
, called to discuss whether the party should remain in government in coalition
with a section of the Liberal Party
under the leadership of Liberal Prime Minister
David Lloyd George
. The party leadership favoured continuing, but the party rebels led by Andrew Bonar Law and Stanley Baldwin
argued that participation was damaging the party. The meeting voted decisively against the Coalition, which resulted in its collapse, the resignation of Austen Chamberlain
as party leader, and the invitation of Bonar Law to form a Government. The Conservatives subsequently won the general election
with an overall majority.
. A crisis of confidence in December 1916 led to Asquith's replacement by David Lloyd George
, and the Liberal Party split between supporters of the two with Asquith's faction going into increasingly open opposition. The coalition continued after the end of the war with the 'Coalition Coupon
' election
delivering a large majority for the coalition, although most coalition supporters were Conservatives. Lloyd George was never personally popular with Conservatives and the government's introduction of Liberal policies led several Conservative MPs to go into opposition over the next four years. In October 1922, the overall state of the parties in Parliament was:
, and Lloyd George's willingness to see war, over the Turkish threat to the British and French troops stationed at Çanakkale
. The Foreign Secretary in the coalition government, Lord Curzon
, was a Conservative but was absent when the Cabinet agreed a strong response. Curzon knew this response would cause a diplomatic breach with France where the Prime Minister was friendly towards the Turks; in fact the French had already ordered their troops' withdrawal. At the last minute, Curzon arranged with the French to negotiate an armistice rather than simply withdraw. The incident also caused some of the Dominion
governments to protest. Conservatives blamed Lloyd George personally for a needless confrontation.
On 15 October Chamberlain called a meeting of all Conservative Members of the House of Commons, to ask for a vote of confidence
in his leadership and in the continuation of the Coalition. Chamberlain intended that a common electoral programme be agreed for the general election and the precise details be settled after the expected victory, despite the fact that Lloyd George had specifically opposed this concept in his speech.
outlining his views on future British policy in the near east, which differed from that of the Coalition. While his attendance at the meeting was not certain as his health was still poor, the driving factor for Bonar Law was thought to be Conservative Party unity. Bonar Law made up his mind the day before to go to the meeting, and to oppose the Coalition there.
Preparing for the meeting, several groups of Conservative MPs met to discuss the situation. Leo Amery, who disliked the idea of a Coalition which existed only for the "negative policy of anti-Socialism", called a meeting of 17 Conservative ministers on 16 October at which he found many wanted Lloyd George deposed. Chamberlain heard of the meeting and accused Amery of plotting against him; Amery said that he was trying to arrange a compromise. On 18 October Amery told chief whip Leslie Wilson
that the Coalition's future should be decided by a party meeting after the election; Wilson obtained Chamberlain's agreement. Also on that day, about 80 Conservative MPs met under Sir Samuel Hoare; they supported independence in the election with possible post-election co-operation with Coalition Liberals. This group organised a delegation to Bonar Law to persuade him to oppose the Coalition, and drafted a motion for the Carlton Club meeting.
campaign underway in the borough of Newport
caused by the death of the sitting Coalition Liberal MP. The general expectation among the press was that the Labour Party would win. The poll was held on 18 October, and counted immediately after with the result being declared at 2 AM. Conservative candidate Reginald Clarry
won the seat, with the Liberal candidate finishing a poor third. Due to the timing, only two London newspapers were able to cover the result in much detail, but The Times
gave it particular prominence including a leader
which described it as a "complete condemnation of the Coalition Government" and vindicating the anti-Coalition Conservatives.
, with at least 286 present. At least 11 MPs were absent abroad on the day, none of whom were supporters of the Coalition. Many of those arriving at the meeting were still shocked by recently learning of the Newport result. It was noted that Chamberlain was rather coldly received, in contrast to Bonar Law and Baldwin. Although the meeting was private, a report was issued to the press by Conservative Central Office
immediately after.
According to this report, Austen Chamberlain as chair began by complaining that the "storm of attack and criticism" over the Chanak crisis had weakened Britain's influence and undermined its authority. Chamberlain referred to the imminent general election and the need to unify the party, saying that the Coalition could not continue as it was and a critical decision was needed. Explaining that the real fight was not between Conservative and Liberal, but between those who stand for individual freedom and those who are for the socialisation of the state, he asserted that it was not a moment to break with old allies and that it would be impossible to get a majority against the Labour Party without co-operation with the Liberals. He then rejected the idea of "half-hearted co-operation" in which the Conservatives would split with the Liberals after the election if they were able to form a Government on their own. Chamberlain concluded that it would be arbitrary and mad to split from the Liberals "in face of the danger which confronts us".
Chamberlain was followed by Stanley Baldwin
, who put forward the views of the anti-Coalition ministers. He openly threatened to stand as an Independent Conservative in the election should the Coalition continue, and criticised the decision to call an election without consulting the party. Baldwin referred to the description of Lloyd George as "a dynamic force" and noted that the result of that force was the destruction of his own Liberal Party; he feared that the same destruction would be visited on the Conservative Party in time. As evidence he referred to the fact that both he and Chamberlain were prepared to "go into the wilderness" should the meeting go against them, a division he attributed to Lloyd George personally. This was famously summed up in his phrase: "a dynamic force can be a terrible thing".
Veteran MP Captain Ernest Pretyman
spoke next, opposing the Coalition and asserting that the issues of the day could "best be met by Conservative principles rather than by a Coalition of which many members are very doubtful". Believing that the Conservative Party should come out on its own, he moved a resolution:
The motion was seconded by George Lane-Fox who said that it was impossible for a Coalition to have principles. Lane-Fox believed it would be wrong to pretend to the electors that the Conservative Party was independent when it was intended that the Coalition would continue as before. Frank Mildmay
regarded some of the criticism of Lloyd George as unfair and unpatriotic, but referred to a previous speech by Chamberlain which declared that the Government should not go into an election as a Coalition. He referred to his history as a Liberal Unionist
and paid tribute to the measures introduced by Conservatives and Liberal Unionists in Coalition governments, but appealed for "real true fidelity to the principles" of the Unionist Party. Sir Henry Craik
also spoke in support of fighting the election independently, believing the party had not fully exercised its influence in Government.
repealed the Corn Laws
: a split in which "the body that is cast off will slowly become the Conservative Party, but it will take a generation before it gets back to the influence which the party ought to have". He concluded by referring to the replacement of Asquith by Lloyd George, due to loss of confidence in Asquith's ability to win the war, and stated that he had the same feeling now about Lloyd George.
One section of Bonar Law's speech was suppressed from the official report. In it Bonar Law accepted that he was "an opportunist" and that the smashing of the Liberal Party by Lloyd George "did not disturb me a bit".
Bonar Law was followed by Earl Balfour
, the former Prime Minister, who made a speech in support of the Coalition. He dismissed the suggestion that Lloyd George was insinuating Liberal principles onto the Conservative ministers, and believed that breaking up the Coalition would destroy the machinery which would best tackle future political issues, and artificially revive the two party system. He concluded by strongly urging the meeting to support its leader, at which there were cries of "Bonar Law!". Col Leslie Wilson, the Chief Whip
of the Conservative Party and a junior Minister in the Coalition, said that it would be impossible for any member of the Government to take the course proposed by Chamberlain; if asked at the election whether he would serve under Lloyd George if the Conservatives won a majority, and his answer would have to be 'No'.
After James Fitzalan Hope made an attempt to adjourn the meeting until the following day, Sir A. Shirley Benn
spoke of his recollection that the Coalition was to last one Parliament only. Lord Hugh Cecil
urged a straight vote on whether there should be a Conservative policy supporting a Conservative Prime Minister, or a Coalition policy supporting Lloyd George. Chamberlain intervened from the Chair to accept that proposition and accepted that Pretyman's motion embodied it. He persuaded James Fitzalan Hope to withdraw his motion for an adjournment, and then began to put Pretyman's motion to the vote. Wilfrid Ashley quickly intervened to point out that those supporting the motion were in favour of a Conservative Prime Minister and a Conservative government.
There were also many deliberate abstentions. A list of the votes of each Conservative Member of Parliament was among the papers left by Austen Chamberlain and was later analysed. Historian Michael Kinnear noted that MPs voted according to a clear pattern, with those in traditionally Liberal areas supporting the Coalition, while those in safe Conservative seats opposed it. The Coalition's strongest supporters were in Scotland, east Lancashire, the south-west of England, and the East of England.
, gave in their resignations to Lloyd George, being followed by former Coalition supporters including Chamberlain and Balfour. Lloyd George drove to Buckingham Palace
in the middle of the afternoon to offer the Government's resignation. King George V
summoned Bonar Law and invited him to form a new Government, but Bonar Law demurred on the grounds that he was not Leader of his party and could not accept until he was. His accession to the leadership was however regarded as a formality, and his first call after leaving the Palace was to invite Lord Curzon to remain as Foreign Secretary when the Government was formed. A meeting of the Unionist Party was summoned for Monday 23 October at the Hotel Cecil, and unanimously confirmed Bonar Law as the new Leader; he "kissed hands" and formally succeeded Lloyd George as Prime Minister in the afternoon, simultaneously obtaining a dissolution of Parliament
and calling a general election
for 15 November.
The Conservatives secured an overall majority at the election. The Conservative Members who were first elected to Parliament in that election formed the Conservative Private Members' Committee
to discuss and influence political events; the membership expanded in subsequent years as more new Conservative MPs were elected, and in 1926 all backbench
members were invited to become members. The committee became popularly known as the '1922 Committee' from the year of its formation.
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
who belonged to the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, called to discuss whether the party should remain in government in coalition
Coalition
A coalition is a pact or treaty among individuals or groups, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own self-interest, joining forces together for a common cause. This alliance may be temporary or a matter of convenience. A coalition thus differs from a more formal covenant...
with a section of the Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
under the leadership of Liberal Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
. The party leadership favoured continuing, but the party rebels led by Andrew Bonar Law and Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
argued that participation was damaging the party. The meeting voted decisively against the Coalition, which resulted in its collapse, the resignation of Austen Chamberlain
Austen Chamberlain
Sir Joseph Austen Chamberlain, KG was a British statesman, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and half-brother of Neville Chamberlain.- Early life and career :...
as party leader, and the invitation of Bonar Law to form a Government. The Conservatives subsequently won the general election
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
with an overall majority.
Background
The Conservatives and Liberals, traditional rivals, had first come together in a coalition government during the First World War in 1915 under H. H. AsquithH. H. Asquith
Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith, KG, PC, KC served as the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916...
. A crisis of confidence in December 1916 led to Asquith's replacement by David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
, and the Liberal Party split between supporters of the two with Asquith's faction going into increasingly open opposition. The coalition continued after the end of the war with the 'Coalition Coupon
Coalition Coupon
The ‘Coalition Coupon’, often referred to as ‘the coupon’, refers to the letter sent to parliamentary candidates at the United Kingdom general election, 1918 endorsing them as official representatives of the Coalition Government. The 1918 election took place in the heady atmosphere of victory in...
' election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
delivering a large majority for the coalition, although most coalition supporters were Conservatives. Lloyd George was never personally popular with Conservatives and the government's introduction of Liberal policies led several Conservative MPs to go into opposition over the next four years. In October 1922, the overall state of the parties in Parliament was:
| Party | Faction | Government | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservatives | Coalition | 313 | |
| Non-coalition | 65 | ||
| Liberals | Coalition | 120 | |
| Non-coalition | 35 | ||
| Labour | 76 | ||
| 'Coalition Labour' or NDP National Democratic and Labour Party The National Democratic and Labour Party, usually abbreviated to National Democratic Party , was a political party in the United Kingdom.... |
11 | ||
| Others | 87 | ||
Chanak crisis
Conservative discontent with the Coalition was maximised by the sudden diplomatic crisis with TurkeyTurkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, and Lloyd George's willingness to see war, over the Turkish threat to the British and French troops stationed at Çanakkale
Çanakkale
Çanakkale is a town and seaport in Turkey, in Çanakkale Province, on the southern coast of the Dardanelles at their narrowest point. The population of the town is 106,116 . The mayor is Ülgür Gökhan ....
. The Foreign Secretary in the coalition government, Lord Curzon
George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston
George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, KG, GCSI, GCIE, PC , known as The Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and as The Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman who was Viceroy of India and Foreign Secretary...
, was a Conservative but was absent when the Cabinet agreed a strong response. Curzon knew this response would cause a diplomatic breach with France where the Prime Minister was friendly towards the Turks; in fact the French had already ordered their troops' withdrawal. At the last minute, Curzon arranged with the French to negotiate an armistice rather than simply withdraw. The incident also caused some of the Dominion
Dominion
A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities that were nominally under British sovereignty, constituting the British Empire and British Commonwealth, beginning in the latter part of the 19th century. They have included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland,...
governments to protest. Conservatives blamed Lloyd George personally for a needless confrontation.
Calling of the meeting
Amid increasing public attacks on the Coalition and on Lloyd George personally, the Cabinet on 10 October decided to call a general election as a Coalition. Austen Chamberlain and David Lloyd George both arranged to speak at public meetings in defence of the Coalition. Opinion from the Conservative Party membership was reported to say that holding a general election as a Coalition would split the party, although there was speculation that if Lloyd George were replaced by a Conservative as Prime Minister, the situation might be different. Chamberlain, in his speech in Birmingham on 13 October, asserted that the Coalition was united and that Lloyd George had behaved with perfect loyalty to the Conservatives in it. He also stated that he did not intend to call a meeting for Conservatives to decide their attitude to the Coalition.On 15 October Chamberlain called a meeting of all Conservative Members of the House of Commons, to ask for a vote of confidence
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
in his leadership and in the continuation of the Coalition. Chamberlain intended that a common electoral programme be agreed for the general election and the precise details be settled after the expected victory, despite the fact that Lloyd George had specifically opposed this concept in his speech.
Events prior to the meeting
Before the meeting there was particular speculation about the position of Andrew Bonar Law. He had been Leader of the Conservative Party for ten years, resigning both the leadership and his Government post in 1921 due to ill health, and he retained a large following within the party. On 7 October a letter from Bonar Law was published by The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
outlining his views on future British policy in the near east, which differed from that of the Coalition. While his attendance at the meeting was not certain as his health was still poor, the driving factor for Bonar Law was thought to be Conservative Party unity. Bonar Law made up his mind the day before to go to the meeting, and to oppose the Coalition there.
Preparing for the meeting, several groups of Conservative MPs met to discuss the situation. Leo Amery, who disliked the idea of a Coalition which existed only for the "negative policy of anti-Socialism", called a meeting of 17 Conservative ministers on 16 October at which he found many wanted Lloyd George deposed. Chamberlain heard of the meeting and accused Amery of plotting against him; Amery said that he was trying to arrange a compromise. On 18 October Amery told chief whip Leslie Wilson
Leslie Orme Wilson
Sir Leslie Orme Wilson, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, DSO, PC was a British soldier, Conservative politician and Governor of Queensland.-Personal life:...
that the Coalition's future should be decided by a party meeting after the election; Wilson obtained Chamberlain's agreement. Also on that day, about 80 Conservative MPs met under Sir Samuel Hoare; they supported independence in the election with possible post-election co-operation with Coalition Liberals. This group organised a delegation to Bonar Law to persuade him to oppose the Coalition, and drafted a motion for the Carlton Club meeting.
Newport
Simultaneously with the crisis, there was a by-electionNewport by-election, 1922
The Newport by-election, 1922 was by-election held in the parliamentary constituency of Newport on 18 October 1922. The by-election attracted especial attention, both at the time and since, as it was seen as a crucial electoral test of the viability of the Lloyd George Coalition Government,...
campaign underway in the borough of Newport
Newport (Monmouthshire) (UK Parliament constituency)
Newport was a borough constituency in Monmouthshire from 1918 to 1983. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system....
caused by the death of the sitting Coalition Liberal MP. The general expectation among the press was that the Labour Party would win. The poll was held on 18 October, and counted immediately after with the result being declared at 2 AM. Conservative candidate Reginald Clarry
Reginald Clarry
Sir Reginald George Clarry, , was a Conservative Party Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, representing the Newport constituency in Monmouthshire from 1922 to 1929 and from 1931 to 1945....
won the seat, with the Liberal candidate finishing a poor third. Due to the timing, only two London newspapers were able to cover the result in much detail, but The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
gave it particular prominence including a leader
Editorial
An opinion piece is an article, published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about the subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals.-Editorials:...
which described it as a "complete condemnation of the Coalition Government" and vindicating the anti-Coalition Conservatives.
The meeting itself
There was a large turnout of Members of Parliament to the meeting which began at 11 AM on 19 October in the Carlton ClubCarlton Club
The Carlton Club is a gentlemen's club in London which describes itself as the "oldest, most elite, and most important of all Conservative clubs." Membership of the club is by nomination and election only.-History:...
, with at least 286 present. At least 11 MPs were absent abroad on the day, none of whom were supporters of the Coalition. Many of those arriving at the meeting were still shocked by recently learning of the Newport result. It was noted that Chamberlain was rather coldly received, in contrast to Bonar Law and Baldwin. Although the meeting was private, a report was issued to the press by Conservative Central Office
Conservative Campaign Headquarters
Conservative Campaign Headquarters , formerly known as Conservative Central Office is the headquarters of the British Conservative Party, housing its central staff and committee members....
immediately after.
According to this report, Austen Chamberlain as chair began by complaining that the "storm of attack and criticism" over the Chanak crisis had weakened Britain's influence and undermined its authority. Chamberlain referred to the imminent general election and the need to unify the party, saying that the Coalition could not continue as it was and a critical decision was needed. Explaining that the real fight was not between Conservative and Liberal, but between those who stand for individual freedom and those who are for the socialisation of the state, he asserted that it was not a moment to break with old allies and that it would be impossible to get a majority against the Labour Party without co-operation with the Liberals. He then rejected the idea of "half-hearted co-operation" in which the Conservatives would split with the Liberals after the election if they were able to form a Government on their own. Chamberlain concluded that it would be arbitrary and mad to split from the Liberals "in face of the danger which confronts us".
Chamberlain was followed by Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin
Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, KG, PC was a British Conservative politician, who dominated the government in his country between the two world wars...
, who put forward the views of the anti-Coalition ministers. He openly threatened to stand as an Independent Conservative in the election should the Coalition continue, and criticised the decision to call an election without consulting the party. Baldwin referred to the description of Lloyd George as "a dynamic force" and noted that the result of that force was the destruction of his own Liberal Party; he feared that the same destruction would be visited on the Conservative Party in time. As evidence he referred to the fact that both he and Chamberlain were prepared to "go into the wilderness" should the meeting go against them, a division he attributed to Lloyd George personally. This was famously summed up in his phrase: "a dynamic force can be a terrible thing".
Veteran MP Captain Ernest Pretyman
Ernest George Pretyman
Ernest George Pretyman PC, JP, DL , known as E. G. Pretyman, was a British soldier and Conservative Party politician.-Background and education:...
spoke next, opposing the Coalition and asserting that the issues of the day could "best be met by Conservative principles rather than by a Coalition of which many members are very doubtful". Believing that the Conservative Party should come out on its own, he moved a resolution:
The motion was seconded by George Lane-Fox who said that it was impossible for a Coalition to have principles. Lane-Fox believed it would be wrong to pretend to the electors that the Conservative Party was independent when it was intended that the Coalition would continue as before. Frank Mildmay
Francis Bingham Mildmay, 1st Baron Mildmay of Flete
Francis Bingham Mildmay, 1st Baron Mildmay of Flete DL, TD was initially a Liberal and later a Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1885 until 1922 when he was raised to the peerage....
regarded some of the criticism of Lloyd George as unfair and unpatriotic, but referred to a previous speech by Chamberlain which declared that the Government should not go into an election as a Coalition. He referred to his history as a Liberal Unionist
Liberal Unionist Party
The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington and Joseph Chamberlain, the party formed a political alliance with the Conservative Party in opposition to Irish Home Rule...
and paid tribute to the measures introduced by Conservatives and Liberal Unionists in Coalition governments, but appealed for "real true fidelity to the principles" of the Unionist Party. Sir Henry Craik
Sir Henry Craik, 1st Baronet
Sir Henry Craik, 1st Baronet, PC, KCB was a Scottish Unionist politician.He was Member of Parliament for Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities from 1906 to 1918, and for the Combined Scottish Universities from 1918 until his death in 1927...
also spoke in support of fighting the election independently, believing the party had not fully exercised its influence in Government.
Bonar Law
Andrew Bonar Law then spoke, admitting it was only at the last minute he decided to come to the meeting. He described the idea of the Coalition fighting and winning an election, and the Conservatives then asking Lloyd George to resign in favour of Chamberlain, as dishonourable since winning the election would be a mandate for Lloyd George. Bonar Law had no fear of a Labour Government being elected, and thought continuing the Coalition would help Labour by making it the only credible opposition. He then described the split in the Conservative Party in which many members had refused to stand as Coalition supporters, and said that carrying out Chamberlain's intentions would repeat what happened when Robert PeelRobert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 December 1834 to 8 April 1835, and again from 30 August 1841 to 29 June 1846...
repealed the Corn Laws
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were trade barriers designed to protect cereal producers in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland against competition from less expensive foreign imports between 1815 and 1846. The barriers were introduced by the Importation Act 1815 and repealed by the Importation Act 1846...
: a split in which "the body that is cast off will slowly become the Conservative Party, but it will take a generation before it gets back to the influence which the party ought to have". He concluded by referring to the replacement of Asquith by Lloyd George, due to loss of confidence in Asquith's ability to win the war, and stated that he had the same feeling now about Lloyd George.
One section of Bonar Law's speech was suppressed from the official report. In it Bonar Law accepted that he was "an opportunist" and that the smashing of the Liberal Party by Lloyd George "did not disturb me a bit".
Bonar Law was followed by Earl Balfour
Arthur Balfour
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, KG, OM, PC, DL was a British Conservative politician and statesman...
, the former Prime Minister, who made a speech in support of the Coalition. He dismissed the suggestion that Lloyd George was insinuating Liberal principles onto the Conservative ministers, and believed that breaking up the Coalition would destroy the machinery which would best tackle future political issues, and artificially revive the two party system. He concluded by strongly urging the meeting to support its leader, at which there were cries of "Bonar Law!". Col Leslie Wilson, the Chief Whip
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
of the Conservative Party and a junior Minister in the Coalition, said that it would be impossible for any member of the Government to take the course proposed by Chamberlain; if asked at the election whether he would serve under Lloyd George if the Conservatives won a majority, and his answer would have to be 'No'.
After James Fitzalan Hope made an attempt to adjourn the meeting until the following day, Sir A. Shirley Benn
Arthur Shirley Benn, 1st Baron Glenravel
Arthur Shirley Benn, 1st Baron Glenravel KBE , known as Sir Arthur Shirley Benn, Bt, between 1926 and 1936, was a British businessman and politician.-Education:Benn studied at Clifton College, then at Inner Temple...
spoke of his recollection that the Coalition was to last one Parliament only. Lord Hugh Cecil
Hugh Cecil, 1st Baron Quickswood
Hugh Richard Heathcote Gascoyne-Cecil, 1st Baron Quickswood PC , styled Lord Hugh Cecil until 1941, was a British Conservative Party politician.-Background and education:...
urged a straight vote on whether there should be a Conservative policy supporting a Conservative Prime Minister, or a Coalition policy supporting Lloyd George. Chamberlain intervened from the Chair to accept that proposition and accepted that Pretyman's motion embodied it. He persuaded James Fitzalan Hope to withdraw his motion for an adjournment, and then began to put Pretyman's motion to the vote. Wilfrid Ashley quickly intervened to point out that those supporting the motion were in favour of a Conservative Prime Minister and a Conservative government.
The vote
The vote was taken by cards marked with the name of the MP, and the result was announced as follows:| 187 | |
| 87 |
There were also many deliberate abstentions. A list of the votes of each Conservative Member of Parliament was among the papers left by Austen Chamberlain and was later analysed. Historian Michael Kinnear noted that MPs voted according to a clear pattern, with those in traditionally Liberal areas supporting the Coalition, while those in safe Conservative seats opposed it. The Coalition's strongest supporters were in Scotland, east Lancashire, the south-west of England, and the East of England.
Aftermath
Immediately after the meeting, the dissenting Conservative ministers including Baldwin and Sir Arthur Griffith-BoscawenArthur Griffith-Boscawen
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Arthur Sackville Trevor Griffith-Boscawen PC was a British Conservative Party politician whose career was cut short by losing a string of Parliamentary elections....
, gave in their resignations to Lloyd George, being followed by former Coalition supporters including Chamberlain and Balfour. Lloyd George drove to Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
in the middle of the afternoon to offer the Government's resignation. King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
summoned Bonar Law and invited him to form a new Government, but Bonar Law demurred on the grounds that he was not Leader of his party and could not accept until he was. His accession to the leadership was however regarded as a formality, and his first call after leaving the Palace was to invite Lord Curzon to remain as Foreign Secretary when the Government was formed. A meeting of the Unionist Party was summoned for Monday 23 October at the Hotel Cecil, and unanimously confirmed Bonar Law as the new Leader; he "kissed hands" and formally succeeded Lloyd George as Prime Minister in the afternoon, simultaneously obtaining a dissolution of Parliament
Dissolution of parliament
In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...
and calling a general election
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
for 15 November.
The Conservatives secured an overall majority at the election. The Conservative Members who were first elected to Parliament in that election formed the Conservative Private Members' Committee
1922 Committee
In British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
to discuss and influence political events; the membership expanded in subsequent years as more new Conservative MPs were elected, and in 1926 all backbench
Backbencher
In Westminster parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a Member of Parliament or a legislator who does not hold governmental office and is not a Front Bench spokesperson in the Opposition...
members were invited to become members. The committee became popularly known as the '1922 Committee' from the year of its formation.
External links
- "Waiting for the verdict", a contemporary cartoon by David Low, published on the day of the meeting but before the result was known.