Lansdowne: The Last Great Whig

by Simon Kerry

Overview

Lord Lansdowne (1845-1927) was one of the last hereditary aristocrats to wield power by virtue of his birth—and he used it to establish himself as a force to be reckoned with in politics for half a century. This biography, the first to be written with full access to Lansdowne’s extensive archive, presents the man and politician in the context of his era, offering not only insight into his own life and achievements but also fascinating details about his interactions with the leading personalities and events of his day. Simon Kerry deftly traces the long arc of Lansdowne’s career, which included service as Governor-General of Canada, Viceroy of India, Secretary of State for War, Foreign Secretary, and Leader of the House of Lords. The Lansdowne we meet in these pages is a moderate progressive, honest and courteous to the last, trusted by everyone, and struggling—as did so many of his class and generation—with the decline of British power that followed the end of World War I.

​A remarkable achievement, Lansdowne will stand as the definitive biography of a statesman who played a major role at a pivotal moment in the history of the United Kingdom.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781910787953
Publisher:	Unicorn Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/15/2018
Edition description:	1
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.80(d)

About the Author

Simon Kerry is an author who lives in London.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements vii

A Note on the Names ix

Introduction xi

Section I At Home and Abroad

1 Early Life and School 3

2 Oxford 9

3 A Year Off 13

4 Getting Started 18

5 A Matter of Principle 27

6 Canada Settling In 32

7 The North-West 41

8 A Tempting Offer 46

9 The Viceroyalty 54

10 A Fighting Viceroy 63

11 People and Policy in India 68

12 Manipur and Maharajas 72

13 A Year of Change 79

14 The End in Sight 85

15 Farewell to India 90

Section II In Office

16 The War Office 97

17 Reform of the War Office 106

18 Reform of the Army 113

19 Origins of the War in South Africa 124

20 The War in South Africa 130

21 Fighting the War in South Africa 137

22 The Foreign Office 145

23 New Impetus at the Foreign Office 155

24 Further Changes in Direction 163

25 The Transformation of the Foreign Office 173

26 Living with the Liberals 183

27 "Unionist Blocking 191

28 The People's Budget 197

20 The 1910 General Elections 203

30 The King 210

31 The Final Stages of the Parliament Bill 215

32 New Direction 223

33 Home Rule Progresses 232

34 Rising Militancy 237

35 The Outbreak of the First World War 244

36 The Fall of the Asquith Coalition 257

Section III War and Peace

37 Out of Office 275

38 Moves towards Peace 280

39 The Lansdowne Movement 298

40 The End of the War 304

Section IV Legacy

41 The Final Years 315

42 Conclusion: A Life of Service 324

Abbreviations 330

Bibliography 331

Illustration Credits 335

Endnotes 336

Index 389

Editorial Reviews

"The term 'Whiggish' when used today, if used at all, describes someone who sees history unfolding toward ever greater progress, an optimist with a gradualist view of politics. While not an utterly ahistorical definition, it leaves out a lot. Simon Kerry, a London-based scholar, vividly recovers a fuller sense of the Whig worldview in 'Lansdowne: The Last Great Whig' and brings to our attention one of the most important political figures of his own day, though a man all but forgotten in ours. . . . Indeed, Mr. Kerry's fine study of the man and his world shows how necessary such a commitment remains today." 

Wall Street Journal

"Simon (Earl of) Kerry is a direct descendant of Lansdowne and the current heir to his title, but this book is no work of family piety....The last great Whig would not have wanted a biography written passionately in his defence. Simon Kerry lays out the facts of a remarkable life fully and with calm authority. That is what this forgotten statesman would have regarded as the proper course, and it makes this book a major contribution to modern political history."

Lord Lexden

This extremely well-researched and well-written biography by Simon Kerry… shows that Lansdowne was much more than just a safe pair of hands.…  [T]his book marks the arrival on the scene of a major new sleuthing historian of modern Britain. His efforts have been well rewarded by an avalanche of new material not mentioned in the only other biography of Lansdowne, which was published in 1929.

Literary Review - Andrew Roberts

"The 5th Marquess of Lansdowne’s life coincides with the Victorian high point of the British Empire, and he had an enormous part in it. He was a grandee of grandees. . . . This is an admiring biography also in the Victorian mould."

The Oldie - Norman Stone

"The term 'Whiggish' when used today, if used at all, describes someone who sees history unfolding toward ever greater progress, an optimist with a gradualist view of politics. While not an utterly ahistorical definition, it leaves out a lot. Simon Kerry, a London-based scholar, vividly recovers a fuller sense of the Whig worldview in 'Lansdowne: The Last Great Whig' and brings to our attention one of the most important political figures of his own day, though a man all but forgotten in ours. . . . Indeed, Mr. Kerry's fine study of the man and his world shows how necessary such a commitment remains today." 

Wall Street Journal

"The 5th Marquess of Lansdowne’s life coincides with the Victorian high point of the British Empire, and he had an enormous part in it. He was a grandee of grandees. . . . This is an admiring biography also in the Victorian mould."

The Oldie