Torrington by-election, 1958
Encyclopedia
The Torrington by-election of 1958, in Devon
, England
, was the first gain by the British Liberal Party
at a by-election
since Holland with Boston in 1929
.
The election was caused by the accession of George Lambert
, National Liberal
and Conservative
Member of Parliament
for Torrington
to a hereditary peerage as Viscount Lambert
. He had held the constituency since its creation in 1950, with large majorities over Labour Party
candidates. The Liberal Party
had only contested the seat in 1950, although they then came second, with 25% of the vote. Lambert's father, also George Lambert
, had held the predecessor seat of South Molton
for much of its history, initially as a Liberal, but then as a National Liberal.
Although generally popular, the Conservative administration of Harold Macmillan
had been hit by differences over economic policy, and in January 1958, all the Government's Treasury Ministers had resigned.
The Liberal Party had reached its lowest ebb in the 1951 general election
, winning just 2.5% of the vote nationally, and gaining only six MPs. They had been reduced to five seats when they lost the Carmarthen by-election, 1957
, but their fortunes had shown signs of a revival when they came a close second in North Dorset later in the year, and Rochdale
early in 1958.
The Conservatives selected Anthony Royle
, President of the Western Area Young Conservatives, a London-based insurance broker
who had unsuccessfully contested St Pancras North in the 1955 general election
. The Liberals chose Mark Bonham Carter
, a publisher and advisor (and brother-in-law) to Jo Grimond who had unsuccessfully stood in Barnstaple
in the 1945 election
. Labour stood L. Lamb, who had been their candidate in Torrington in 1955.
The by-election
was held on 27 March 1958. Following Granada Television
's screening of the Rochdale by-election earlier in the year, BBC Television
chose Torrington for their second election broadcast (after the 1955 general election). When the votes were counted, Bonham-Carter won a surprise victory, by just 219 votes - their first by-election victory since Middlesbrough West in 1945
, and that achieved due to the wartime electoral pact. The Conservatives were beaten into second place, while Labour also lost votes and finished third.
For the Liberals there was a somewhat ironic situation. The previous year they had lost a seat to Lloyd George
's daughter
. Now they had gained a seat with Asquith's grandson.
Bonham-Carter lost the seat less than eighteen months later, in the 1959 general election
, and failed to retake it when he stood again in 1964
. In 1959, Royle chose to fight Richmond instead, winning a seat in the Commons
. The Torrington by-election proved the first Liberal success in a long revival which continued with the 1962 Orpington by-election
.
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, was the first gain by the British 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...
at a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
since Holland with Boston in 1929
Holland with Boston by-election, 1929
The Holland with Boston by-election, 1929 was a by-election held on 21st March 1929 for the British House of Commons constituency of Holland with Boston in Lincolnshire....
.
The election was caused by the accession of George Lambert
George Lambert, 2nd Viscount Lambert
George Lambert, 2nd Viscount Lambert, TD was a British politician.Lambert was the eldest son of long-serving Devon Member of Parliament, the Rt. Hon. George Lambert. He was educated at Harrow School and New College, Oxford. During World War II he was commissioned into the Royal Engineers, but...
, National Liberal
National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)
The National Liberal Party, known until 1948 as the Liberal National Party, was a liberal political party in the United Kingdom from 1931 to 1968...
and 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...
Member of Parliament
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,...
for Torrington
Torrington (UK Parliament constituency)
Torrington was a county constituency centred on the town of Torrington in Devon. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1950 until it was abolished for the February 1974 general election....
to a hereditary peerage as Viscount Lambert
Viscount Lambert
Viscount Lambert, of South Molton in the County of Devon, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1945 for George Lambert, who had been a Liberal Member of Parliament since 1891, with the exception for the 1924-1929 Parliament. He was succeeded by his eldest son, the...
. He had held the constituency since its creation in 1950, with large majorities over Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
candidates. 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...
had only contested the seat in 1950, although they then came second, with 25% of the vote. Lambert's father, also George Lambert
George Lambert, 1st Viscount Lambert
George Lambert, 1st Viscount Lambert, PC was a long-serving British Member of Parliament .Lambert was first elected as Liberal MP for South Molton at a by-election in 1891. He was Civil Lord of the Admiralty 1905-1915. He lost his seat at the 1924 to the Conservative Cedric Drewe, but regained...
, had held the predecessor seat of South Molton
South Molton (UK Parliament constituency)
South Molton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the small town of South Molton in Devon, in the South West of England. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
for much of its history, initially as a Liberal, but then as a National Liberal.
Although generally popular, the Conservative administration of Harold Macmillan
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
had been hit by differences over economic policy, and in January 1958, all the Government's Treasury Ministers had resigned.
The Liberal Party had reached its lowest ebb in the 1951 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
, winning just 2.5% of the vote nationally, and gaining only six MPs. They had been reduced to five seats when they lost the Carmarthen by-election, 1957
Carmarthen by-election, 1957
The Carmarthen by-election of 1957 in Carmarthenshire, Wales, was notable for resulting in the nadir of the British Liberal Party and for being the first election in the United Kingdom in which two women competed for the same seat....
, but their fortunes had shown signs of a revival when they came a close second in North Dorset later in the year, and Rochdale
Rochdale by-election, 1958
The Rochdale by-election of 13 February 1958 was a by-election for the constituency of Rochdale, in Lancashire, England, in the House of Commons...
early in 1958.
The Conservatives selected Anthony Royle
Anthony Royle
Anthony Henry Fanshawe Royle, Baron Fanshawe of Richmond KCMG was a British Conservative Party politician and businessman....
, President of the Western Area Young Conservatives, a London-based insurance broker
Insurance broker
An insurance broker finds sources for contracts of insurance on behalf of their customers. The three largest insurance brokers in the world, by revenue, are Aon, Marsh & McLennan, and Willis Group Holdings.-Purpose of insurance brokers:...
who had unsuccessfully contested St Pancras North in the 1955 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
. The Liberals chose Mark Bonham Carter
Mark Bonham Carter, Baron Bonham-Carter
Mark Raymond Bonham Carter, Baron Bonham-Carter , was an English publisher and politician. He was created a life peer in 1986.-Early life:...
, a publisher and advisor (and brother-in-law) to Jo Grimond who had unsuccessfully stood in Barnstaple
Barnstaple (UK Parliament constituency)
Barnstaple was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Barnstaple in Devon, in the South West of England. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member.The constituency...
in the 1945 election
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
. Labour stood L. Lamb, who had been their candidate in Torrington in 1955.
The by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
was held on 27 March 1958. Following Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
's screening of the Rochdale by-election earlier in the year, BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
chose Torrington for their second election broadcast (after the 1955 general election). When the votes were counted, Bonham-Carter won a surprise victory, by just 219 votes - their first by-election victory since Middlesbrough West in 1945
Middlesbrough West by-election, 1945
The Middlesbrough West by-election, 1945 was a parliamentary by-election held on 14 May 1945 for the British House of Commons constituency of Middlesbrough West.- Previous MP :...
, and that achieved due to the wartime electoral pact. The Conservatives were beaten into second place, while Labour also lost votes and finished third.
For the Liberals there was a somewhat ironic situation. The previous year they had lost a seat to Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
's daughter
Megan Lloyd George
Lady Megan Arfon Lloyd George CH was a British politician, the first female Member of Parliament for a Welsh constituency, and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party. She later became a Labour MP....
. Now they had gained a seat with Asquith's grandson.
Bonham-Carter lost the seat less than eighteen months later, in the 1959 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
, and failed to retake it when he stood again in 1964
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
. In 1959, Royle chose to fight Richmond instead, winning a seat in the 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...
. The Torrington by-election proved the first Liberal success in a long revival which continued with the 1962 Orpington by-election
Orpington by-election, 1962
The Orpington by-election of 1962 is often described as the start of the Liberal Party revival in the United Kingdom.The election was caused by the appointment of Donald Sumner, Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Orpington as a County Court Judge...
.