The Victorian era featured many political giants. Robert Peel, Benjamin Disraeli, and Lord Salisbury are some obvious examples. Yet the man who spent the most time as prime minister was none other than William Gladstone.
Gladstone was Great Britain’s prime minister for twelve years across four separate premierships, something no other prime minister in British history has ever achieved. While this was certainly an impressive feat, Gladstone’s political career was far from smooth.
William Gladstone’s Childhood and Education
Though Gladstone was a Victorian politician, he was not a Victorian child. Born in December 1809, his childhood took place during the closing years of King George III’s reign. This time is referred to as the Regency era, as George was incapable of ruling due to mental illness, forcing his eldest son—the prince regent—to take over. Gladstone was the fifth of six children. The family lived in Liverpool, and John Gladstone (the father) was a wealthy ship owner and trader who had amassed a considerable fortune following his move from Scotland to Liverpool. He also owned slavery plantations in the West Indies.
Gladstone grew up in a religious and academic household. At the age of twelve, he started studying at the most famous school in the country: Eton. In addition to his normal academic studies, he edited the school magazine and was a member of the school debating society.
Like many well-known British politicians (both past and present), Gladstone went from Eton to Oxford. Here, he achieved a rare Double First in classics and mathematics. Though he seriously considered becoming a priest, Gladstone opted for a political career instead.
Gladstone’s Early Political Career
Gladstone entered the House of Commons as a Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party in December 1832. This was a difficult time for the Conservatives. It was the first election since the passing of the Reform Act, and the party had not fared well under the new system, losing many rotten boroughs. The Whigs, meanwhile, were divided over how to tackle the disorders in Ireland. King William IV ultimately dismissed the government, opening the door for the Conservative Party.
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Robert Peel, the Conservatives held another general election, hoping to increase their influence in the House of Commons. Though they won an additional ninety-eight seats, the Conservative Party was still short of a majority. Peel was forced to step down, and Whig leader Lord Melbourne returned to the top job once again.
With the Victorian era now underway, the Conservatives managed to return to power in the summer of 1841. Prime Minister Peel offered the young Gladstone an important role at the Board of Trade. Gladstone was hesitant, for he had no experience in the realm of trade. But Peel would not accept no for an answer, and—after some persuasion from his wife Catherine—Gladstone agreed.
Despite his busy and hectic home life (Gladstone and Catherine had eight children between 1842 and 1854!), he excelled in his new position. He quickly learned the mechanics of political organization and how to present a case before Parliament. Within two years, Peel moved Gladstone into the Cabinet as the President of the Board of Trade.
Gladstone, along with Peel, supported the idea of free trade and oversaw the modification of tariffs. He worked hard to balance the interests of merchants and manufacturers with exporters and importers. He also introduced laws to help the development of industry, including the Railway Regulation Act of 1844.
The Corn Laws
Thanks to a series of poor harvests in the 1840s, which some now refer to as the “Hungry Forties,” there was a demand for cheap grain from abroad. Unfortunately, Britain’s Corn Laws placed tariffs on imported grain, ramping up the price. (This was done to prevent imported grain from outpricing home-produced grain.)
Though Prime Minister Peel was in favor of change, many of his fellow Conservatives benefited from the Corn Laws. If he were to present a bill and repeal the laws, it would be political suicide. Despite this, the prime minister pushed forward and managed to repeal the Corn Laws with the help of the Whigs. This was a key moment in Britain’s economic history, with free trade dethroning protectionism.
Those who supported the now-fallen prime minister splintered off from the rest of their party and were known as the Peelites. Gladstone, with his staunch support of free trade, was a leading member of this group. Tragically, Peel died at the age of sixty-two due to a horse-riding incident in the summer of 1850, leaving the Peelites without their leader.
Gladstone suffered another tragedy in 1850 when his four-year-old daughter died from meningitis. Unfortunately, child mortality was common in the Victorian age, particularly during the formative years of Queen Victoria’s reign, when disease spread easily due to poorer sanitation and plumbing.
Yet Gladstone remained a prominent force in Britain’s political scene. He managed the country’s finances as the Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1852 and 1855 during the premiership of the Earl of Aberdeen, who was also a Peelite. At the end of the decade, Gladstone and the other Peelites abandoned the Conservative Party and joined the newly formed Liberal Party.
Gladstone’s support of free trade was key to this move, but his decision was also motivated by his dislike of Benjamin Disraeli, a protectionist who had preceded Gladstone as the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Prime Minister William Gladstone
After returning to the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gladstone became the leader of the Liberal Party in 1867 following Lord Palmerston’s resignation.
The same year saw the passing of the Second Reform Act, almost doubling the number of men who could vote. Disraeli, who was now the leader of the Conservative Party, believed the expanded electorate would be grateful for the passing of the legislation and reward the Conservatives by voting for them. But he was wrong. It was the Liberal Party that won the general election in 1868, ushering in the first of four terms for Prime Minister William Gladstone.
During his first premiership, Gladstone oversaw the passing of many social and political reforms. The 1870 Education Act made elementary education available to children between the ages of five and thirteen, while the 1872 Ballot Act introduced the secret ballot to local and parliamentary elections. The latter reduced the influence of bribery and corruption in elections. The Liberal Party also passed the 1872 Health Act, dividing England and Wales into health authorities to be overseen by medical officers, though this was largely ineffective due to poor funding.
By 1874, Gladstone’s reform program had run out of steam, and Disraeli’s Conservative Party won the next general election.
Gladstone Versus Disraeli
In 1876, Ottoman troops slaughtered 12,000 Bulgarians during the April Uprising of 1876, and Prime Minister Disraeli received criticism for his apparent indifference to this horrifying event.
Gladstone, on the other hand, was outraged. He wrote a scathing analysis of the Ottoman atrocities and the government’s inaction in a pamphlet called Bulgarian Horrors and the Question of the East. The pamphlet proved to be very popular with the public, achieving high sales figures.
Russia responded to the massacre by going to war with the Ottomans in a conflict known as the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). The war ended in early 1878 with Turkey gifting the island of Cyprus to Britain in return for protection against future Russian aggression. Some praised Disraeli for helping to bring peace, but Gladstone saw Britain’s acquisition of Cyprus as yet another example of his rival’s lust for imperialism.
Gladstone’s moral outrage continued with his Midlothian Campaign, a series of speeches in the late 1870s criticizing the government’s actions overseas. Yet Gladstone’s impact on foreign policy wasn’t perfect either. Following the Liberal Party’s victory in the 1880 election, he returned to the top job and soon encountered problems of his own.
Alongside Britain’s setbacks in South Africa and Egypt, the death of General Gordon during the Siege of Khartoum in Sudan was a disaster. Many people held Gladstone personally responsible for the death of General Gordon and his fellow troops, saying he had failed to reinforce the general’s outpost. Some even called Gladstone the “Murderer of Gordon.”
Gladstone and the Irish Question
In 1886, Gladstone became prime minister for the third time, with the Liberal Party joining forces with Charles Stewart Parnell’s Irish Nationalists.
Gladstone was keen to fix Ireland’s problems. In his first ministry, he had overseen the passing of the Irish Church Act in 1869 and the Landlord and Tenant Act for Ireland in 1870. Now, as part of his third ministry, Gladstone supported a devolved assembly for Ireland, hence his support of the Irish Nationalists.
This policy, known as Home Rule for Ireland, proved to be a thorn in Gladstone’s side. The main issue was the tension between Protestants and Catholics. Protestants in northeastern Ireland believed Home Rule would give control to the Catholic majority. Some even used the phrase “Rome Rule.”
Liberal politicians, led by Lord Hartington, John Bright, and Joseph Chamberlain, voted against the government, preventing Gladstone from passing the Home Rule bill. It then became the focal point of the next general election. The Liberal Party lost a significant number of seats in Parliament, and Gladstone stepped down.
He returned, however, for the fourth and final time following the election in Summer 1892. Though the Conservatives had more seats, Gladstone’s Liberals commanded a majority in the House of Commons with the help of the Irish Nationals. Now eighty-two, increasingly deaf, and with a cantankerous attitude, Gladstone found himself surrounded by a different political generation.
Once again, Home Rule was the center of Gladstone’s attention, and the Cabinet framed and accepted a new Home Rule bill. Though Ireland was to have its own legislative assembly, matters like defense, foreign relations, and trade regulation would be decided in London, with eighty Irish representatives having a seat in Westminster. But once again, the religious divisions in Ireland weren’t properly addressed, and the bill failed to make it through.
William Gladstone’s Death and Legacy
Gladstone resigned in March 1894. He was succeeded by Archibald Primrose, who is often cited as one of the worst Prime Ministers in British history. Primrose didn’t command the respect of his predecessor and led the Liberals to an almighty defeat in the 1895 election.
Three years later, Gladstone died at the age of eighty-eight, which was an impressive feat in those days. He received a state funeral at Westminster Abbey, and his wife was buried beside him following her own death several years later.
Gladstone holds a unique place in British history as the only person to become prime minister four times. However, as impressive as this is, it’s important to acknowledge that Gladstone’s political career was by no means perfect.
His failure to pacify Ireland was a continuous thorn in his side toward the end of his career. Gladstone never fixed the issue of Home Rule (or Rome Rule), which ultimately led to his downfall. His mishandling of Sudan and the death of General Gordon also tarnished his legacy.
The more positive parts of Gladstone’s career include the progressive reforms passed by his Liberal Party, his support of free trade, and his criticism of Disraeli’s foreign policy. Indeed, Gladstone’s lack of enthusiasm for imperialism has aged much better than Disraeli’s jingoistic attitude.
While Victorian politics is quite a niche historical topic, William Gladstone’s career, with all its ups and downs, remains one of the most interesting tales from the Victorian era.
