Coalition Government 1916–1922
- Coalition Government 1916–1922
The Coalition Government of David Lloyd George came to power in the United Kingdom in December 1916, replacing the earlier wartime coalition under H.H. Asquith, which had been held responsible for reverses during the Great War. Those Liberals who continued to support Asquith served as the Opposition. The Government continued in power after the end of the war, though Lloyd George was increasingly reliant on the Conservatives for support. After several scandals including allegations of the sale of honours, the Conservatives withdrew their support after a meeting of the Carlton Club in 1922, and Andrew Bonar Law formed a government.
This was the last ever Liberal government to this day. The liberals moved into the third place in the two horse race of Britain's 'first past the post' system. This was due to many reasons, one being the rise of Labour. The Labour party had recently been formed, and strongly appealed to the working classes. Also, the Liberals had lost their distinctive appeal. Labour now talked about internationalism, social justice, pacifism, a fair deal for the working man etc. The Tories were also using Liberal rhetoric, as they championed 'free trade'. The Liberals were losing many supporters, with the middle classes becoming more comfortable with the conservatives and the avuncular Stanley Baldwin. The working classes now saw their 'natural home' in the Labour party. Lloyd George also lost the support of the proletariat, due to him deftly turning the 'Tripple Alliance' into the 'Cripple Alliance', in order to escape a General Strike.
Also the coalition broke down due to the Conservatives. They only joined the coalition to receive reflected glory from 'the man who won the war'. When they had ceased with their 'political vampirism' the coalition broke down.
The Liberals, once again, tried to crawl back into second place, by supporting the first Labour Government in 1924, but Lloyd George failed to demand that Macdonald introduced Proportional Representation, and so once again Lloyd George failed the Liberals. So since then the Liberals under numerous different leaders have not been able to gain enough votes to get back into government, the only votes they have received over the past eighty years have just been 'protest votes'. The failure of the Liberal's, despite Loyd George's best efforts, can be summarised in the careers of his own children, his son became a Tory MP, and his daughter a Labour MP.
Members of the Cabinet are in bold face. Members of the War Cabinet, 6 December 1916 to 31 October 1919, are indicated.
Source: D. Butler and G. Butler, "Twentieth Century British Political Facts" (Macmillan, 2000)
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
United Kingdom coalition government (1916–1922) — David Lloyd George, Prime Minister 1916–1922. The Coalition Government of David Lloyd George came to power in the United Kingdom in December 1916, replacing the earlier wartime coalition under H.H. Asquith, which had been held responsible for… … Wikipedia
United Kingdom coalition government (1915–1916) — Asquith s British coalition government of 1915 1916 was formed in the aftermath of the Gallipoli disaster, by bringing in the Conservatives to shore up the government. The Conservatives were not terribly pleased with the offices they received in… … Wikipedia
Conservative Government 1922–1924 — Members of the Cabinet are shown in bold face. Name Office Dates Notes Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury and Leader of the House of Commons Andrew Bonar Law 23 October 1922 – 20 May 1923 Stanley Baldwin 22 May 1923 – 22 January… … Wikipedia
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… … Wikipedia
1922 in Australia — Infobox Australian year year = 1922 monarch = George V governor general = Henry Forster pm =Billy Hughes population = 5,569,889 australian = elections =Federal, New South Wales, Tasmania See also: 1921 in Australia, other events of 1922, 1923 in… … Wikipedia
Government of Ireland Act 1920 — An Act to Provide for the Better Government of Ireland, more usually the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, [This is its official short title; the formal citation is 10 11 Geo. 5 c. 67.] (and sometimes called the Fourth Home Rule Act ) was an Act… … Wikipedia
National government — National governments (alternatively national unity governments or national union governments) are broad coalition governments consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature and are often formed during times of war or national … Wikipedia
National unity government — A national unity government, government of national unity, or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other national… … Wikipedia
National Liberal Party (UK, 1922) — The National Liberal Party was a liberal political party in the United Kingdom from 1922 to 1923. It was led by David Lloyd George and was, at the time, separate to the original Liberal Party. Contents 1 History 2 Reunion 3 See also … Wikipedia
United Kingdom general election, 1922 — Infobox Election election name = United Kingdom general election, 1922 country = United Kingdom type = parliamentary ongoing = no previous election = United Kingdom general election, 1918 previous year = 1918 previous mps = MPs elected in the… … Wikipedia
