Liberals in the Interwar Periods

27/10

Why were the liberals divided? (2)

There was division between Asquith (Liberal Prime Minister) and Lloyd George (Secretary of State for War)

This concerned Asquiths dislike of the growth of state power during war

What happened in 1916? (3)

There was a liberal split

The Lloyd George Liberals formed a coalition with the Conservatives

In 1919, Asquith formally set up the Independent Liberal Party

What happened to liberal votes?

They were split between the Independent Liberal Party (Asquith) and the Coalition Liberals (Lloyd George)

How were the conservatives tactical during the 1918 election? (4)

They supported a continuation of the coalition with the Liberals

Lloyd George was considered a national hero, “the man who won the war”

This meant they could win enough MPs to govern

They could heavily influence governing of the country whilst enjoying DLGs popularity

How many seats did the conservatives win in 1918? (2)

332/459 won by the coalition

The conservatives were the majority in the coalition

Why was the 1918 election known as the coupon election? (2)

Lloyd George handed out “coupons” for those who backed them (an official backing)

This was to encourage liberals to vote for them

When did the Conservative-Liberal coalition end?

1922

Lloyd George: Cash for Peers Scandal (4)

June 1922

He had been popular due to his humble origins from north Wales so he presented himself as an enemy of privelege

Scandal damaged his credibility

During his time as PM (1916-22) , he had sold 1500 knighthoods and nearly 100 peerages (nobles/upperclass)

Lloyd George: Chanak Incident (2)

Made the decision to go to war with Turkey if they tried to revise the peace treaty they were forced to sign

Conservatives disagreed with this - Lloyd George was labeled a warmonger

Lloyd George: Geddes Axe (3)

1921

Sir Eric Geddes (Liberal Chancellor) introduced public spending cuts during a time of economic crisis - these amounted to £87 million

Mostly from military - but health, welfare and housing budgets reduced from £205.8 million in 1920-21 to £182.1 million in 1922-23

Lloyd George: Conservative advantage (2)

The Conservatives took advantage of his unpopularity and abandoned the coalition

Trigered an election for November 1922 - Liberal disaster

Why did the Liberals fail to win the 1922-1924 elections (2)

They lacked proper funds + enough candidates to run successful campaigns

This was partly due to Lloyd George witholding funds unless members gave him full support

What happened in the October 1924 election? (3)

Liberals lost 119 seats

Their share of the vote decreased by 12%

Liberals who had lost faith in the party turned to Conservatives

What happened in 1926? (3)

Asquith resigned - Lloyd George was able to reunite the liberals into one party

He tried to create a viable set of policies to solve unemployment and investment in Industry (presented in the Yellow Book)

They never gained enough support for these - their votes continued to decline