Conservative Dominance 1918/31 - A Changing Political and Economic Environment 1918 - 79

How were the Conservatives dominant in interwar British politics?

—  David Lloyd George’s Coalition Government of 1918 to 1922 was dominated by Conservative MPs. The government was made up of 335 Conservatives alongside 133 Lloyd George Liberals and 10 Coalition Labour MPs.

—  The Conservatives withdraw from the coalition in 1922 and win the following election.

—  In December 1923, the Conservatives lose their overall majority in the election but remain the largest party in Parliament with 258 seats compared with 191 Labour and 158 Liberals.

—  Conservatives win the 1924 general election with a large majority.

—  Conservatives lose the 1929 general election, although no party has an overall majority.

—  Conservatives agree to participate in the National Government in 1931 and become the dominant party in this coalition government until 1945.

Why were the Conservatives dominant in interwar British politics?

1. The electoral system of 1918.
2. Weaknesses of opposition parties.
3. Effective party organisation.
4. Effective leadership and image.

How did changes in the electoral system help the Conservatives?

—  Plural voting remained until 1948 which distorted the impact of traditional Conservative voters. Plural voting enabled businessmen who lived in one constituency and owned property in another to vote in both constituencies. People could also vote in their home constituencies AND in their university constituency. Both businessmen and under/graduates tended to vote Conservative.

—  In 1918, constituency boundaries were redrawn to reflect population movements. This change gave middle class suburbs – those people who owned their property - greater representation.

—  This unevenness was exacerbated by the first past the post electoral system. It was calculated that it took 15, 943 to return a Conservative MP, 29, 898 for a Labour MP and 26, 116 for a Liberal MP.

—  In 1921, the Irish Free State gained independence. Independence from the UK resulted in the loss of 80 Nationalist MP’s, who had supported the Liberals. In contrast the Conservatives continued to receive support from 10 Northern Irish MP’s

How did divisions with the opposition help the Conservatives?

—  The Liberals, who the main opposition to the Conservatives before 1918, were plagued by division. Much of this was due to Lloyd George, the Liberal leader.

—  By 1931, many of the right wing Liberals spilt from the official Liberal Party and became National Liberals forming a close alliance with the Conservative Party.

—  The Labour Party found it difficult in the interwar years to establish themselves outside their industrial working class heartlands.

—  In 1931, the Labour government was deeply divided over how to handle the economic crisis and were decimated in the general election of that year.

How effective were the Conservatives organised?

—  Because the Conservatives were seen as the ‘party of property’, funding was not a problem. Therefore, the party were able to field more candidates, distribute party materials more widely and to exploit new technologies, such as the cinema, to get across its message.

—  The Conservatives developed a true national party structure with organised local branches and a network of professional agents.

—  Internal organisation was also developed with the Conservative Research Department being created in 1929 which was responsible for research, drafting speeches and preparing party documents, such as election manifestoes.

How effective was image the Conservatives projected in the interwar years?

—  The rebranding of the Conservative Party began in the 1870s moving away from the party of wealth and privilege to ‘one nation Tories’ - which promoted empire, patriotism and national defence. This move was designed to attract the uncommitted working class voter – which it did.

—  The dominant figure in the Conservative Party in the interwar years was Stanley Baldwin, who was leader between 1923 and 1937. He continued this rebranding, presenting himself as a straight-talking man of the people, although he could be seen as dull - ‘safety first’ campaign.

—  Although he owned a fortune in the steel industry, Baldwin was known to run his factories fairly and promote good working relationships between employers and workers.

—  Therefore, Baldwin gained a reputation for economic competence and this helped not only bolster support from traditional voters but also attracted wealthy, middle class Liberals.

—  This had been a challenge as Baldwin was a key figure in destroying the Lloyd George Coalition in 1922 and going back on his commitment to support the Liberal policies of protectionism and free trade in 1924.

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