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William Ewart Gladstone | |
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.jpg) Gladstone in 1892 | |
| Prime Minister of the United Kingdom | |
| In office 15 August 1892 – 2 March 1894 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Preceded by | The Marquess of Salisbury |
| Succeeded by | The Earl of Rosebery |
| In office 1 February 1886 – 21 July 1886 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Preceded by | The Marquess of Salisbury |
| Succeeded by | The Marquess of Salisbury |
| In office 23 April 1880 – 9 June 1885 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Preceded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Succeeded by | The Marquess of Salisbury |
| In office 3 December 1868 – 17 February 1874 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Preceded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | |
| In office 28 April 1880 – 16 December 1882 | |
| Prime Minister | Himself |
| Preceded by | Stafford Northcote |
| Succeeded by | Hugh Childers |
| In office 11 August 1873 – 17 February 1874 | |
| Prime Minister | Himself |
| Preceded by | Robert Lowe |
| Succeeded by | Stafford Northcote |
| In office 18 June 1859 – 26 June 1866 | |
| Prime Minister | The Viscount Palmerston The Earl Russell |
| Preceded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| In office 28 December 1852 – 28 February 1855 | |
| Prime Minister | The Earl of Aberdeen |
| Preceded by | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Succeeded by | George Cornewall Lewis |
| Lord High Commissioner of the Ionian Islands | |
| In office 25 January 1859 – 17 February 1859 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Preceded by | Sir John Young |
| Succeeded by | Sir Henry Knight Storks |
| Additional positions | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 29 December 1809 62 Rodney Street, Liverpool, Lancashire, England |
| Died | 19 May 1898 (aged 88) Hawarden Castle, Flintshire, Wales |
| Resting place | Westminster Abbey |
| Political party | Liberal (1859–1898) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouse | |
| Children | 8; including William, Helen, Henry and Herbert |
| Parents |
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| Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
| Cabinet | |
| Signature |  |
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| Liberalism in the United Kingdom |
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William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS (/ˈɡlædstən/ GLAD-stən; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for 12 years, spread over four non-consecutive terms (the most of any British prime minister) beginning in 1868 and ending in 1894. He also was Chancellor of the Exchequer four times, for over 12 years. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1832 to 1845 and from 1847 to 1895; during that time he represented a total of five constituencies.
Gladstone was born in Liverpool to Scottish parents. He first entered the House of Commons in 1832, beginning his political career as a High Tory, a grouping that became the Conservative Party under Robert Peel in 1834. Gladstone served as a minister in both of Peel's governments, and in 1846 joined the breakaway Peelite faction, which eventually merged into the new Liberal Party in 1859. He was chancellor under Lord Aberdeen (1852–1855), Lord Palmerston (1859–1865) and Lord Russell (1865–1866). Gladstone's own political doctrine – which emphasised equality of opportunity and opposition to trade protectionism – came to be known as Gladstonian liberalism. His popularity amongst the working-class earned him the sobriquet "The People's William".
In 1868, Gladstone became prime minister for the first time. Many reforms were passed during his first ministry, including the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland and the introduction of secret voting. After electoral defeat in 1874, Gladstone resigned as leader of the Liberal Party. From 1876 he began a comeback based on opposition to the Ottoman Empire's reaction to the Bulgarian April Uprising. His Midlothian Campaign of 1879–1880 was an early example of many modern political campaigning techniques.[1][2] After the 1880 general election, Gladstone formed his second ministry (1880–1885), which saw the passage of the Third Reform Act as well as crises in Egypt (culminating in the Fall of Khartoum) and Ireland, where his government passed repressive measures but also improved the legal rights of Irish tenant farmers.
Back in office in early 1886, Gladstone proposed home rule for Ireland but was defeated in the House of Commons. The resulting split in the Liberal Party helped keep them out of office – with one short break – for 20 years. Gladstone formed his last government in 1892, at the age of 82. The Government of Ireland Bill 1893 passed through the Commons but was defeated in the House of Lords in 1893, after which Irish Home Rule became a lesser part of his party's agenda. Gladstone left office in March 1894, aged 84, as both the oldest person to serve as prime minister and the only prime minister to have served four non-consecutive terms. He left Parliament in 1895 and died three years later.
Gladstone was known affectionately by his supporters as "The People's William" or the "G.O.M." ("Grand Old Man", or, to political rivals "God's Only Mistake").[3] Historians often rank Gladstone as one of the greatest prime ministers in British history.[4][5][6][7]
- ^ Wiesner-Hanks, Merry E.; Evans, Andrew D.; Wheeler, William Bruce; Ruff, Julius (2014). Discovering the Western Past, Volume II: Since 1500. Cengage Learning. p. 336. ISBN 978-1111837174. Archived from the original on 13 March 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
- ^ Price, Richard (1999). British Society 1680–1880: Dynamism, Containment and Change. Cambridge University Press. p. 289. ISBN 978-0521657013. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
- ^ Gardham, Duncan (12 June 2008). "David Davis's Victorian inspiration: William Gladstone". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 30 June 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ Harrison, J. F. C. (2013). Late Victorian Britain 1875–1901. Routledge. p. 31. ISBN 978-1136116445. Archived from the original on 24 September 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
- ^ Aldous, Richard (2007). The Lion and the Unicorn: Gladstone Vs Disraeli. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 4. ISBN 978-0393065701. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
- ^ Brighton, Paul (2016). Original Spin: Downing Street and the Press in Victorian Britain. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 193. ISBN 978-1780760599. Archived from the original on 24 September 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
- ^ Grey, Paul; et al. (2016). Challenge and Transformation: Britain, c. 1851–1964. Cambridge University Press. p. 2. ISBN 978-1107572966. Archived from the original on 30 June 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2018.