POLITICS OF EMPIRE AND LABOR 1880-1914

Themes

• Empire, poverty and socialism• The politics of labor • Conservative party dominance 1886-1906• Liberal party governments 1906-1914• Growing social and political tensions

Empire, Poverty and Socialism

• The rediscovery of poverty

• Charles Booth

Empire, Poverty and Socialism

• Booth’s poverty map

Empire, Poverty and Socialism

• Socialist political organizations

• Social reform as a central political issue

Empire, Poverty and Socialism: “The triumph of labour” by

Walter Crane

The Politics of Labor

• Increase in trade union membership 1880s-1914: 400k to 3 million

• Formation of the Labour Party 1900

• 1906 election: 30 MPs

Conservative Party Governments 1886-1906

• Conservative political dominance rests on their attachment to Empire

South African War 1899-1902

Conservative Party Governments

• The dangers highlighted by the South African War: e.g. health of recruits. Thus:

• Social Reform and Empire: how to make Britain stronger through social reform?

Conservative Party Governments

• Tariff Reform proposed by Joseph Chamberlain 1904-1910

Conservative Party Governments

• But Tariff Reform politically divisive. • Collapse of Conservative Government 1905• Loss of election in 1906 to the Liberal Party

Liberal Government 1906-14

• Social reform • Winston Churchill• David Lloyd George• Old Age Pensions 1909• Unemployment insurance 1911

Churchill and Lloyd George

Growing Social and Political Tensions 1910-14

• Votes for women

Growing Social and Political . . .

Growing . . . .Political Tensions

• Ireland

Growing . . . Tensions

Growing . . . . .

• Industrial militancy

Growing . .

• Everyone thought it was Ireland that would explode.

• Instead it was a dusty, provincial town in the heart of the Balkans called Sarajevo