As a National Government, it contained members of the Conservative Party, Liberals and National Labour, as well as a number of individuals who belonged to no political party. The breakaway Liberal Nationals supported the National Government after their formation in September 1931 but none received posts in the new administration. Subsequently, two Liberal ministers, Alec Glassey and John Pybus, defected to the Liberal Nationals. It did not contain members of the Labour Party as MacDonald had been expelled from it. The Labour Party led the opposition.
Viewed by many Labour supporters as a traitor, MacDonald was expelled from the Labour Party, and remained a hated figure within the Labour Party for many years thereafter, despite his great services to his party earlier in his life.[1]
The outgoing Labour cabinet, which was a minority government, was unable to agree upon proposals to cut public expenditure. Prime Minister MacDonald submitted his resignation to King George V on 24 August 1931.
The new Ministry was formed on 24 August 1931, when MacDonald was re-appointed Prime Minister. A smaller-than-usual cabinet was appointed the following day. The King persuaded MacDonald that it was his duty to form a new government to address the financial crisis. The original idea was that the National Government would be free to draw upon the talents of members of all parties, so that it would represent the nation as a whole rather than being a coalition of parties like those which had existed between 1915 and 1922. However, as the main body of the Labour Party refused to co-operate, the government comprised members from MacDonald's small group of National Labour supporters, the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party.
The Liberal Party was split into three factions. The mainstream party led by Sir Herbert Samuel, who had been the Deputy Leader of the party before the formation of the National Government, continued to support free trade. The Liberal National group led by Sir John Simon had accepted the Conservative policy of protectionism. These two Liberal factions were supporters of the National Ministry. The third group led by David Lloyd George (later to be called the Independent Liberals) had initially supported the creation of the National Government with two of them (Gwilym Lloyd George and Goronwy Owen) taking office. David Lloyd George had been expected to join the government after recovering from surgery following an operation on his prostate as he was still the official leader of the Liberal party. However, he refused to support the calling of a general election, and persuaded his supporters to leave the government and go into opposition.
General electionedit
MacDonald's National Government had not originally been intended to fight a general election, but under Conservative pressure one was soon called. The Samuelite Liberal Party was opposed to a general election but found it could not prevent one. Parliament was dissolved on 8 October 1931.
The 1931 general election took place on 27 October 1931 and led to a landslide victory for candidates supporting the National Government. MacDonald reconstructed his government on 5 November 1931, establishing the 1931–35 National Government.
Cabinetedit
August 1931 – November 1931edit
Ramsay MacDonald – Prime Minister and Leader of the House of Commons
Taylor, A.J.P. English History 1914-1945 (1965) pp 321–88
Thorpe, Andrew. Britain in the 1930s. The Deceptive Decade, (Oxford: Blackwell, 1992). ISBN0-631-17411-7
Williamson, Philip. National Crisis and National Government. British Politics, the Economy and the Empire, 1926–1932, (Cambridge UP, 1992). ISBN0-521-36137-0
national, government, 1931, this, article, includes, list, general, references, lacks, sufficient, corresponding, inline, citations, please, help, improve, this, article, introducing, more, precise, citations, april, 2019, learn, when, remove, this, message, n. This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations April 2019 Learn how and when to remove this message The National Government of August October 1931 also known as the First National Government was the first of a series of national governments formed during the Great Depression in the United Kingdom It was formed by Ramsay MacDonald as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom following the collapse of the previous minority government led by the Labour Party known as the Second MacDonald ministry National Government1st National Government of the United KingdomAugust October 1931Ramsey MacDonaldDate formed24 August 1931 1931 08 24 Date dissolved27 October 1931 1931 10 27 People and organisationsMonarchGeorge VPrime MinisterRamsay MacDonaldPrime Minister s history1929 1935Deputy Prime MinisterStanley Baldwin note 1 Total no of members59 appointmentsMember partiesConservative PartyLiberal PartyNational LabourLiberal National PartyStatus in legislatureMajority coalition 333 615 54 Opposition partyLabour PartyOpposition leadersArthur Hendersonin the House of CommonsLord Parmoorin the House of LordsHistoryOutgoing election1931 general electionLegislature term s 35th UK ParliamentPredecessorSecond MacDonald ministrySuccessorSecond National Government As a National Government it contained members of the Conservative Party Liberals and National Labour as well as a number of individuals who belonged to no political party The breakaway Liberal Nationals supported the National Government after their formation in September 1931 but none received posts in the new administration Subsequently two Liberal ministers Alec Glassey and John Pybus defected to the Liberal Nationals It did not contain members of the Labour Party as MacDonald had been expelled from it The Labour Party led the opposition Viewed by many Labour supporters as a traitor MacDonald was expelled from the Labour Party and remained a hated figure within the Labour Party for many years thereafter despite his great services to his party earlier in his life 1 Contents 1 Formation 2 General election 3 Cabinet 3 1 August 1931 November 1931 3 1 1 Key 4 Members of the Ministry 5 Notes 6 Footnotes 7 ReferencesFormation edit nbsp Ramsay MacDonald had served as Prime Minister since 1929 The outgoing Labour cabinet which was a minority government was unable to agree upon proposals to cut public expenditure Prime Minister MacDonald submitted his resignation to King George V on 24 August 1931 The new Ministry was formed on 24 August 1931 when MacDonald was re appointed Prime Minister A smaller than usual cabinet was appointed the following day The King persuaded MacDonald that it was his duty to form a new government to address the financial crisis The original idea was that the National Government would be free to draw upon the talents of members of all parties so that it would represent the nation as a whole rather than being a coalition of parties like those which had existed between 1915 and 1922 However as the main body of the Labour Party refused to co operate the government comprised members from MacDonald s small group of National Labour supporters the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party The Liberal Party was split into three factions The mainstream party led by Sir Herbert Samuel who had been the Deputy Leader of the party before the formation of the National Government continued to support free trade The Liberal National group led by Sir John Simon had accepted the Conservative policy of protectionism These two Liberal factions were supporters of the National Ministry The third group led by David Lloyd George later to be called the Independent Liberals had initially supported the creation of the National Government with two of them Gwilym Lloyd George and Goronwy Owen taking office David Lloyd George had been expected to join the government after recovering from surgery following an operation on his prostate as he was still the official leader of the Liberal party However he refused to support the calling of a general election and persuaded his supporters to leave the government and go into opposition General election editMacDonald s National Government had not originally been intended to fight a general election but under Conservative pressure one was soon called The Samuelite Liberal Party was opposed to a general election but found it could not prevent one Parliament was dissolved on 8 October 1931 The 1931 general election took place on 27 October 1931 and led to a landslide victory for candidates supporting the National Government MacDonald reconstructed his government on 5 November 1931 establishing the 1931 35 National Government Cabinet editAugust 1931 November 1931 edit Ramsay MacDonald Prime Minister and Leader of the House of Commons Lord Sankey Lord Chancellor Stanley Baldwin Lord President Philip Snowden Chancellor of the Exchequer Sir Herbert Samuel Home Secretary Lord Reading Foreign Secretary and Leader of the House of Lords Sir Samuel Hoare Secretary for India J H Thomas Dominions Secretary and Colonial Secretary Sir Philip Cunliffe Lister President of the Board of Trade Neville Chamberlain Minister of Health Key edit Member of National Labour Member of the Conservative Party Member of the Liberal PartyMembers of the Ministry editThe First National Government was composed of members of the following parties National Labour Conservative Party Liberal Party Members of the Cabinet are in bold face Office Name Party Dates Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald National Labour 24 August 1931 5 November 1931 Lord Chancellor Lord Sankey National Labour 25 August 1931 Lord President of the Council Stanley Baldwin Conservative 25 August 1931 Lord Privy Seal Earl Peel Conservative 3 September 1931 Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Snowden National Labour 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Sir Bolton Eyres Monsell Conservative 3 September 1931 Financial Secretary to the Treasury Walter Elliot Conservative 3 September 1931 Lords of the Treasury David Margesson Conservative 26 August 1931 10 November 1931 Sir Frederick Penny Conservative 3 September 1931 12 November 1931 Alec Glassey Liberal note 2 14 September 1931 12 November 1931 Marquess of Titchfield Conservative 3 September 1931 12 November 1931 Euan Wallace Conservative 3 September 1931 12 November 1931 Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Marquess of Reading Liberal 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Anthony Eden Conservative 3 September 1931 Secretary of State for the Home Department Sir Herbert Samuel Liberal 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for the Home Department Oliver Stanley Conservative 3 September 1931 First Lord of the Admiralty Sir Austen Chamberlain Conservative 25 August 1931 Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty Earl Stanhope Conservative 3 September 1931 Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Sir John Gilmour Conservative 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries vacant Secretary of State for Air Lord Amulree National Labour 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for Air Sir Philip Sassoon Conservative 3 September 1931 Secretary of State for the Colonies James Henry Thomas National Labour 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for the Colonies Sir Robert William Hamilton Liberal 3 September 1931 Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs James Henry Thomas National Labour 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs Malcolm MacDonald National Labour 3 September 1931 President of the Board of Education Sir Donald Maclean Liberal 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education Sir Kingsley Wood Conservative 3 September 1931 Minister of Health Neville Chamberlain Conservative 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health Ernest Simon Liberal 22 September 1931 Secretary of State for India Sir Samuel Hoare Conservative 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for India vacant Minister of Labour Sir Henry Betterton Conservative 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour Milner Gray Liberal 3 September 1931 Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Marquess of Lothian Liberal 25 August 1931 Paymaster General Sir Tudor Walters Liberal 4 September 1931 Minister for Pensions George Tryon Conservative 3 September 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Pensions vacant Postmaster General William Ormsby Gore Conservative 3 September 1931 Assistant Postmaster General Graham White Liberal 3 September 1931 Secretary of State for Scotland Sir Archibald Sinclair Liberal 25 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for Scotland Noel Skelton Conservative 3 September 1931 President of the Board of Trade Sir Philip Cunliffe Lister Conservative 25 August 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade Gwilym Lloyd George Liberal 3 September 1931 Secretary for Overseas Trade Sir Edward Young Conservative 3 September 1931 Secretary for Mines Isaac Foot Liberal 3 September 1931 Minister of Transport John Pybus Liberal note 3 3 September 1931 Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport George Gillett National Labour 4 September 1931 Secretary of State for War Marquess of Crewe Liberal 26 August 1931 Under Secretary of State for War vacant Financial Secretary to the War Office Alfred Duff Cooper Conservative 3 September 1931 First Commissioner of Works Marquess of Londonderry Conservative 25 August 1931 Attorney General Sir William Jowitt National Labour 3 September 1931 Solicitor General Sir Thomas Inskip Conservative 3 September 1931 Lord Advocate Craigie Mason Aitchison National Labour 3 September 1931 Solicitor General for Scotland John Charles Watson National Labour 4 September 1931 Treasurer of the Household Sir George Hennessy Bt Conservative 3 September 1931 Comptroller of the Household Goronwy Owen Liberal 14 September 1931 Vice Chamberlain of the Household Sir Frederick Charles Thomson Conservative 3 September 1931Notes edit According to Eccleshall amp Walker 2002 273 and Stanton 2000 26 Baldwin was the effective deputy prime minister in the Conservative dominated Cabinet He served as Lord President of the Council Glassey later joined the Liberal National Party Pybus later joined the Liberal National Party Footnotes edit A Social History of the English Working Classes 1815 1945 by Eric HopkinsReferences editBassett Reginald 1931 Political Crisis 2nd ed Aldershot Macmillan 1986 ISBN 0 566 05138 9 Eccleshall Walker Robert eds June 2002 Biographical Dictionary of British Prime Ministers Routledge ISBN 978 1 134 66231 9 Howell David MacDonald s Party Labour Identities and Crisis 1922 1931 Oxford U P 2002 ISBN 0 19 820304 7 Hyde H Montgomery Baldwin The Unexpected Prime Minister 1973 Jenkins Roy Baldwin 1987 excerpt and text search Mowat Charles Loch Britain between the Wars 1918 1945 1955 PP 413 79 Raymond John ed The Baldwin Age 1960 essays by scholars 252 pages online Smart Nick The National Government 1931 40 Macmillan 1999 ISBN 0 333 69131 8 Stanton Philip 2000 Britain 1905 1951 Nelson Thornes ISBN 978 0 7487 4517 3 Taylor A J P English History 1914 1945 1965 pp 321 88 Thorpe Andrew Britain in the 1930s The Deceptive Decade Oxford Blackwell 1992 ISBN 0 631 17411 7 Williamson Philip National Crisis and National Government British Politics the Economy and the Empire 1926 1932 Cambridge UP 1992 ISBN 0 521 36137 0 Cawood Ian 10 May 2013 Liberal Conservative Coalitions a farce and a fraud History amp Policy http www historyandpolicy org policy papers papers liberal conservative coalitions a farce and a fraud Preceded bySecond MacDonald ministry Government of the United Kingdom1931 1935 Succeeded bySecond National Government Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title National Government 1931 amp oldid 1216673867, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
