Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Earl of Swinton
Encyclopedia
Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Earl of Swinton GBE, CH
, MC
, PC (1 May 1884 – 27 July 1972), known as Philip Lloyd-Greame until 1924 and as The Viscount Swinton from 1935 until 1955, was a prominent British Conservative
politician from the 1920s until the 1950s.
, Bishop of Ossory
. His paternal grandfather Yarburgh Gamaliel Lloyd, later Lloyd-Graeme (1813–1890) had inherited Sewerby (or Sowerby) House by the will of his maternal uncle Yarburgh Greame, later Yarburgh (1782–1856).
He attended Winchester College
and University College, Oxford
, where he studied law and graduated in 1906. He was enlisted in 1914 following the start of World War I
and was awarded the Military Cross
in 1916.
for Hendon
in the 1918 general election
and would hold this seat until his elevation to the House of Lords
in 1935. He was knighted in 1920 for his services as a civil servant in the War Office
. He achieved his first ministerial post as Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade
in 1920 and took charge of the Overseas Trade Department in 1921. In 1922 he became a privy counsellor
and was appointed as President of the Board of Trade, an office he would hold with two breaks until 1931. This fast elevation to the Cabinet came about because of the collapse of the Lloyd George Coalition Government and the new Prime Minister Andrew Bonar Law was forced to promote many inexperienced MPs.
In 1923, Law was forced to resign due to failing health and there was discussion as to whether he would be succeeded by Stanley Baldwin
or Lord Curzon. As the last survivor of Law's Cabinet, Lloyd-Greame would later assert that it was Cabinet hostility to Curzon that prevented his appointment as Prime Minister. On 7 November 1924 Lloyd-Greame changed his surname to Cunliffe-Lister so as to be able to inherit property from his wife's family. Raised to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in 1929, in 1931 Cunliffe-Lister was one of the Conservatives chosen to negotiate with the Labour Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald
as the latter's government collapsed and was replaced by the multi-party National Government
. As a sign of his prominence within the party, Cunliffe-Lister was one of just four Conservatives in the emergency Cabinet of 10, serving for the third and final time as President of the Board of Trade.
The National Government won a massive election victory in the 1931 general election
but was internally divided on the question of protective tariffs
. So as to balance the Cabinet Cunliffe-Lister was replaced at the Board of Trade by the supposed Free Trader Walter Runciman
, and instead became Secretary of State for the Colonies
, which he would hold until 1935. When MacDonald retired as Prime Minister and was succeed by Stanley Baldwin
a Cabinet reshuffle took place in which Cunliffe-Lister became Secretary of State for Air
. At the 1935 general election
he did not contest his seat and was instead ennobled as Viscount Swinton
, retaining his ministerial office for the next three years into the premiership of Neville Chamberlain
.
As Swinton was now in the House of Lords
it was difficult for members of the House of Commons
to hold the Air Ministry to account, and so Chamberlain appointed the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Lord Winterton
(an Irish peer who sat in the House of Commons
) to speak for the Air Ministry in the Commons. This arrangement did not prove successful and in May 1938 there was a disastrous debate on air and it became clear to Chamberlain that the Secretary of State must sit in the House of Commons. Swinton was dismissed, his political career seemingly over.
After serving as Minister Resident in West Africa and being made a Companion of Honour
in 1943, during the Second World War
Swinton's career revived when he was appointed as the first Minister of Civil Aviation
, a post he held until the end of the war. During 1944 he served on the Executive Committee and on the Steering Committee at the Convention on International Civil Aviation
done in Chicago, formally representing the United Kingdom. When Winston Churchill
formed his peacetime government in 1951 he appointed Swinton as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
for a year, then as Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations
for three years. When in 1955 Churchill retired, Swinton insisted on retiring too, and he was further ennobled as the Earl of Swinton
.
Towards the end of his life, Swinton was an Honorary Fellow of University College, Oxford
.
Lord Swinton married Mary Constance "Molly" Boynton (died 1974) in 1912. She was the granddaughter of industrialist Samuel Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Baron Masham who had bought the castle in 1882. In 1924, Philip and Molly Lloyd-Greame took the name of Cunliffe-Lister and moved to Swinton Park (sold in 1980 by the 2nd Earl and bought back 2000 by his nephew, Lord Masham and the latter's family). Their elder son, John, was killed in the Second World War, leaving two sons of his own, of whom the elder grandson succeeded his grandfather as the 2nd Earl of Swinton
, and was succeeded 2006 by his younger brother as the 3rd Earl of Swinton
. The third Earl has two sons, both of whom are now married.
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
, MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
, PC (1 May 1884 – 27 July 1972), known as Philip Lloyd-Greame until 1924 and as The Viscount Swinton from 1935 until 1955, was a prominent British Conservative
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...
politician from the 1920s until the 1950s.
Background and early life
Born as Philip Lloyd-Graeme, he was the younger son of Lieutenant-Colonel Yarburgh George Lloyd-Greame, of Sewerby House, Bridlington, Yorkshire (1840–1928) by his wife Dora Letitia O'Brien, d. of the Right Reverend James Thomas O'BrienJames Thomas O'Brien
James Thomas O'Brien , Church of Ireland Bishop of Ossory, Ferns, and Leighlin.-Early life:O'Brien, born at New Ross, County Wexford, in September 1792, was the son of Michael Burke O'Brien, a corporation officer, with the title of deputy sovereign of New Ross, who died in 1826. His mother,...
, Bishop of Ossory
Bishop of Ossory
The Bishop of Ossory is an episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other bishoprics.-History:The diocese of Ossory...
. His paternal grandfather Yarburgh Gamaliel Lloyd, later Lloyd-Graeme (1813–1890) had inherited Sewerby (or Sowerby) House by the will of his maternal uncle Yarburgh Greame, later Yarburgh (1782–1856).
He attended Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...
and University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
, where he studied law and graduated in 1906. He was enlisted in 1914 following the start of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and was awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
in 1916.
Political career
He was first elected as Member of ParliamentMember 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,...
for Hendon
Hendon (UK Parliament constituency)
Hendon is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election. The current MP, since 2010, is Matthew Offord of the Conservative Party.-History:The constituency was originally...
in the 1918 general 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...
and would hold this seat until his elevation to the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
in 1935. He was knighted in 1920 for his services as a civil servant in the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
. He achieved his first ministerial post as Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade
Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade
The Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade in the United Kingdom was a member of Parliament assigned to assist the Board of Trade and its President with administration and liaison with Parliament. It replaced the Vice-President of the Board of Trade....
in 1920 and took charge of the Overseas Trade Department in 1921. In 1922 he became a privy counsellor
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
and was appointed as President of the Board of Trade, an office he would hold with two breaks until 1931. This fast elevation to the Cabinet came about because of the collapse of the Lloyd George Coalition Government and the new Prime Minister Andrew Bonar Law was forced to promote many inexperienced MPs.
In 1923, Law was forced to resign due to failing health and there was discussion as to whether he would be succeeded 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...
or Lord Curzon. As the last survivor of Law's Cabinet, Lloyd-Greame would later assert that it was Cabinet hostility to Curzon that prevented his appointment as Prime Minister. On 7 November 1924 Lloyd-Greame changed his surname to Cunliffe-Lister so as to be able to inherit property from his wife's family. Raised to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in 1929, in 1931 Cunliffe-Lister was one of the Conservatives chosen to negotiate with the Labour Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald
Ramsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
as the latter's government collapsed and was replaced by the multi-party National Government
UK National Government
In the United Kingdom the term National Government is an abstract concept referring to a coalition of some or all major political parties. In a historical sense it usually refers primarily to the governments of Ramsay MacDonald, Stanley Baldwin and Neville Chamberlain which held office from 1931...
. As a sign of his prominence within the party, Cunliffe-Lister was one of just four Conservatives in the emergency Cabinet of 10, serving for the third and final time as President of the Board of Trade.
The National Government won a massive election victory in the 1931 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
but was internally divided on the question of protective tariffs
Protectionism
Protectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow "fair competition" between imports and goods and services produced domestically.This...
. So as to balance the Cabinet Cunliffe-Lister was replaced at the Board of Trade by the supposed Free Trader Walter Runciman
Walter Runciman, 1st Viscount Runciman of Doxford
Walter Runciman, 1st Viscount Runciman of Doxford PC was a prominent Liberal, later National Liberal politician in the United Kingdom from the 1900s until the 1930s.-Background:...
, and instead became Secretary of State for the Colonies
Secretary of State for the Colonies
The Secretary of State for the Colonies or Colonial Secretary was the British Cabinet minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various colonial dependencies....
, which he would hold until 1935. When MacDonald retired as Prime Minister and was succeed 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...
a Cabinet reshuffle took place in which Cunliffe-Lister became Secretary of State for Air
Secretary of State for Air
The Secretary of State for Air was a cabinet level British position. The person holding this position was in charge of the Air Ministry. It was created on 10 January 1919 to manage the Royal Air Force...
. At the 1935 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1935
The United Kingdom general election held on 14 November 1935 resulted in a large, though reduced, majority for the National Government now led by Conservative Stanley Baldwin. The greatest number of MPs, as before, were Conservative, while the National Liberal vote held steady...
he did not contest his seat and was instead ennobled as Viscount Swinton
Earl of Swinton
Earl of Swinton is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1955 for the prominent Conservative politician Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Viscount Swinton. He had already been created Viscount Swinton, of Masham in the County of York, in 1935, and was made Baron Masham, of...
, retaining his ministerial office for the next three years into the premiership of Neville Chamberlain
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain FRS was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. Chamberlain is best known for his appeasement foreign policy, and in particular for his signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938, conceding the...
.
As Swinton was now in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
it was difficult for members of the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
to hold the Air Ministry to account, and so Chamberlain appointed the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom that includes as part of its duties, the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster...
Lord Winterton
Edward Turnour, 6th Earl Winterton
Edward Turnour, 6th Earl Winterton PC , known as Viscount Turnour until 1907, was an Irish peer and British politician in the first half of the twentieth century who achieved the rare distinction of serving as both Baby of the House and Father of the House at the opposite ends of his career in the...
(an Irish peer who sat in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
) to speak for the Air Ministry in the Commons. This arrangement did not prove successful and in May 1938 there was a disastrous debate on air and it became clear to Chamberlain that the Secretary of State must sit in the House of Commons. Swinton was dismissed, his political career seemingly over.
After serving as Minister Resident in West Africa and being made a Companion of Honour
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
in 1943, during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Swinton's career revived when he was appointed as the first Minister of Civil Aviation
Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
, a post he held until the end of the war. During 1944 he served on the Executive Committee and on the Steering Committee at the Convention on International Civil Aviation
Convention on International Civil Aviation
The Convention on International Civil Aviation, also known as the Chicago Convention, established the International Civil Aviation Organization , a specialized agency of the United Nations charged with coordinating and regulating international air travel...
done in Chicago, formally representing the United Kingdom. When Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
formed his peacetime government in 1951 he appointed Swinton as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom that includes as part of its duties, the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster...
for a year, then as Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations
Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations
The Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations was a British Cabinet office existing between 1947 and 1966, responsible for dealing with British relationship with members of the Commonwealth of Nations . The position was created out of the old position of Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs...
for three years. When in 1955 Churchill retired, Swinton insisted on retiring too, and he was further ennobled as the Earl of Swinton
Earl of Swinton
Earl of Swinton is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1955 for the prominent Conservative politician Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Viscount Swinton. He had already been created Viscount Swinton, of Masham in the County of York, in 1935, and was made Baron Masham, of...
.
Towards the end of his life, Swinton was an Honorary Fellow of University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
.
Family
David Cunliffe-Lister, 2nd Earl of Swinton
David Yarburgh Cunliffe-Lister, 2nd Earl of Swinton, JP, DL was a British peer and politician.David Cunliffe-Lister was born to the Hon. John Yarburgh Cunliffe-Lister and his wife Anne Irvine Medlicott. His father died in 1943 of wounds received in action in during the Second World War...
, and was succeeded 2006 by his younger brother as the 3rd Earl of Swinton
Nicholas Cunliffe-Lister, 3rd Earl of Swinton
Nicholas John Cunliffe-Lister, 3rd Earl of Swinton , styled Hon. Nicholas Cunliffe-Lister from 1974 to 2006, is a British peer....
. The third Earl has two sons, both of whom are now married.
Titles and styles
- Philip Lloyd-Greame, Esq (1884–1916)
- Philip Lloyd-Greame, Esq, MC (1916–1918)
- Philip Lloyd-Greame, Esq, MC MP (1918–1920)
- Sir Philip Lloyd-Greame, KBE MC MP (1920–1922)
- The Right Honourable Sir Philip Lloyd-Greame, KBE MC MP (1922–1924)
- The Right Honourable Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, KBE MC MP (1924–1929)
- The Right Honourable Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, GBE MC MP (1929–1935)
- The Right Honourable The Viscount Swinton, GBE MC PC (1935–1943)
- The Right Honourable The Viscount Swinton, GBE CH MC PC (1943–1955)
- The Right Honourable The Earl of Swinton, GBE CH MC PC (1955–1972)