1906 - Liberal Landslide

1906 - Liberal Landslide

1. The Boer War 1899-1902

   • Began in 1899 with the expectation of victory
   • It cost lives and money (more than expected)
   • The methods used were seen as wrong by people
   • Revealed the effects of poverty and the need of social reforms
   • Liberals gained support by claiming the Conservatives neglected social reforms
   • Encouraged Joseph Chamberlain to push his campaign for tariff reform

2. Balfour- 1902 Education Act

   • It brought all schools under local council control which angered non conformist
   • The schools were mostly controlled by Anglicans and they feared that Anglicans would control the schools = religion
   • It led to great campaign against the act
     • Some refused to pay tax
     • Some non-conformist schools refused to accept council supervision and went independent

3. Lib-Lab Pact

   • The Conservatives = failed to do anything about the effects of the Taff Vale Judgement
     • The Labour Party and Liberal Party formed an alliance
   • They formed in 1903
   • The two parties agreed not to fight against each other in constituencies at the next general election.
   • Labour would support Liberal reforms which would reverse Taff Vale
   • The Liberals offered the prospect of social reforms

4. Chinese Slavery 1902-1904

   • Chinese labourers were working for low wages
   • They were imported into South Africa
   • It raised moral outcry of the treatment of the Chinese
   • Trade union feared that employers might bring them into Brtiain
     • It may cause the wages to go down in Britain and with employments very high in 1905

5. Taff Vale Case

   • 1901, a dispute had broken out in Wales between the Taff Vale Railway Company and the railway workers trade union
   • Led to strike action
   • The company took the trade union to court for compensation for loss of profits during the strike
   • In 1902, the House of Lords, the highest court ruled that a company was within its rights to sue a trade union.
   • The trade union were horrified
   • Only the Act of Parliament could over rule a Lord's judgement and the Conservatives refused

6. The Tariff Reform Campaign

   • This was the Conservatives biggest misjudgement
   • It was launched by Joseph Chamberlain
   • Proposed duties on many imports to counter competition from cheaper foreign goods.
   • He wanted to reintroduce tariffs with a lower tariff for goods coming into Britain from the empire than for goods, imported from non-empire countries. This was the Imperial Protectionism
   • Argued it was to protect British jobs, help pay for social reforms and strength Britain's position in the world
   • Damaged the Conservatives
   • Everyone feared the tariffs because of dearer food and falling living standards.
   • Tariff Reforms divided the Conservatives government & party
   • Helped Liberals reunite and strengthen them since they believe in Free Trade

7. Balfour

   • He was highly intelligent but lacked political skills
   • Failed to forsee the anger that the Chinese labour and his refusal to reverse the Taff Vale Case
   • Misunderstood the working men's reaction to the tariff reform
   • Allowed Chamberlain to make tariff reforms a key unisonist
   • Responsible for the 1906 election through his unusual decison
   • He was indecisive on tarrifs and miscalculated the reation of the workin class on key issues.

8. Attraction to Liberal

   • They reunited in 1905
     • The issues that divided them were pushed aside
   • All agreed and supported Free Trade and exploited this during the 1906 election
   • Exploited Conservative mistakes which led to winning the nonconformist support
   • Irish voters in Britain were more likely to vote Liberal with is support for the Home Rule this the anti-Home Rule Unionist.

9. Neglect Of Social Reform

   • Growing awareness of the extent of poverty
   • Boer War exposed the amount of malnutrition
   • Led to concerns about the physical decline of the Britain
   • Some Liberals were already working out a new form of liberalism
   • The Conservatives produced nothing other than the Education Act