The Oxford University Liberal Democrats is the student branch of the Liberal Democrats for students at the University of Oxford, with the purpose to support, develop, improve and promote the policies and candidates of the Liberal Democrats and liberal values within Oxford and the university.
Oxford University Liberal Club Oxford University Social Democrats
It is affiliated with the federal Young Liberals, and is involved in activism and campaigning alongside the Young Liberals.
It is the official successor to both the Oxford University Liberal Club and the Oxford University Social Democrats, which voted to merge early in 1987, about a year in advance of the national parties.
The Oxford University Liberal Club was founded in 1913,[1] with the stated aim to "rally progressive members of the University to the support of Liberal principles".[2] Its foundation date makes it the oldest political society founded at an English university.[3] It was formed from a merger of two older Liberal societies at Oxford, the Russell Club, and the Palmerston Club, both of which dated to at least the 1870s, and had as their goals the promotion of liberal politics. Around in the early 1900s was also a society called the 'Liberal League', founded "in defence of free trade".[4]
Originally holding premises on the corner of Cornmarket Street and George Street, open for the majority of the day, the society was modeled after the usual gentlemen's clubs of the day, before the arrival of World War I and the general reduction in the student body of Oxford. The society faced further problems in the 1920s, as around half of its members defected and joined the newly established Labour Club, as well as the New Reform Club, a pro-Lloyd George group, reflecting the division of the national Liberal Party at the time.[4]
Revitalization occurred with the coming to the fore of Harold Wilson, Treasurer in Hilary 1935, along with Frank Byers as president and Raymond Walton as secretary. Efforts made to provide a stronger draw to the society – including the institution of a society newspaper and library – had membership treble to over 300.[4] Membership continued to grow during and after the war, with its peak hit under the Presidency of Jeremy Thorpe in 1950, of over 1000 members. By this point, the Liberal Club had become more of a social club, including drinking events, balls, and parties, some of which are continued by the society in its modern form.[5]
Turbulence for the national party meant turbulence for the society itself, however, and the party's catastrophic collapse in the 1960s, combined with mergers throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, led to a smaller membership and a series of renamings and mergers for the society at large. After merging the Oxford University Liberal Club and the Oxford University Social Democrats in 1987, however, the society in its present structure was formed, with a smaller membership focussed more heavily on campaigning, but maintaining the social functions from its post-war heyday.
^Bentley, M., 'The Liberal Mind 1914-29', 174, Cambridge, 2007
^. 28 October 2009. Archived from the original on 28 October 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^ abc"History of the Oxford University Liberal Democrats". theweepingcross.co.uk.
^"Oxford University Liberal Democrats – Events". oulibdems.co.uk.
External linksedit
The Friends of OULD, for information on the history of OULD and its predecessors
March 06, 2024
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This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Oxford University Liberal Democrats news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article relies excessively on references to primary sources Please improve this article by adding secondary or tertiary sources Find sources Oxford University Liberal Democrats news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Learn how and when to remove this template message The Oxford University Liberal Democrats is the student branch of the Liberal Democrats for students at the University of Oxford with the purpose to support develop improve and promote the policies and candidates of the Liberal Democrats and liberal values within Oxford and the university Oxford University Liberal DemocratsAbbreviationOULDFormation1913 111 years ago 1913 as OULC Honorary PresidentLord Tyler ExeterPresidentTheodore Jupp St Peter sSenior MemberSteve GoddardParent organisationYoung LiberalsWebsitewww wbr oulibdems wbr co wbr ukFormerly calledOxford University Liberal Club Oxford University Social DemocratsIt is affiliated with the federal Young Liberals and is involved in activism and campaigning alongside the Young Liberals It is the official successor to both the Oxford University Liberal Club and the Oxford University Social Democrats which voted to merge early in 1987 about a year in advance of the national parties Contents 1 History 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksHistory editMain article Oxford University Liberal Club The Oxford University Liberal Club was founded in 1913 1 with the stated aim to rally progressive members of the University to the support of Liberal principles 2 Its foundation date makes it the oldest political society founded at an English university 3 It was formed from a merger of two older Liberal societies at Oxford the Russell Club and the Palmerston Club both of which dated to at least the 1870s and had as their goals the promotion of liberal politics Around in the early 1900s was also a society called the Liberal League founded in defence of free trade 4 Originally holding premises on the corner of Cornmarket Street and George Street open for the majority of the day the society was modeled after the usual gentlemen s clubs of the day before the arrival of World War I and the general reduction in the student body of Oxford The society faced further problems in the 1920s as around half of its members defected and joined the newly established Labour Club as well as the New Reform Club a pro Lloyd George group reflecting the division of the national Liberal Party at the time 4 Revitalization occurred with the coming to the fore of Harold Wilson Treasurer in Hilary 1935 along with Frank Byers as president and Raymond Walton as secretary Efforts made to provide a stronger draw to the society including the institution of a society newspaper and library had membership treble to over 300 4 Membership continued to grow during and after the war with its peak hit under the Presidency of Jeremy Thorpe in 1950 of over 1000 members By this point the Liberal Club had become more of a social club including drinking events balls and parties some of which are continued by the society in its modern form 5 Turbulence for the national party meant turbulence for the society itself however and the party s catastrophic collapse in the 1960s combined with mergers throughout the late 1970s and 1980s led to a smaller membership and a series of renamings and mergers for the society at large After merging the Oxford University Liberal Club and the Oxford University Social Democrats in 1987 however the society in its present structure was formed with a smaller membership focussed more heavily on campaigning but maintaining the social functions from its post war heyday See also editCambridge University Liberal Association Oxford University Conservative Association Oxford University Labour ClubReferences edit Bloch M Jeremy Thorpe London 2014 Bentley M The Liberal Mind 1914 29 174 Cambridge 2007 Kissing Your Sister A History of the Oxford University Liberal Club and its Successors 1913 1993 28 October 2009 Archived from the original on 28 October 2009 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint bot original URL status unknown link a b c History of the Oxford University Liberal Democrats theweepingcross co uk Oxford University Liberal Democrats Events oulibdems co uk External links editThe Friends of OULD for information on the history of OULD and its predecessors Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Oxford University Liberal Democrats amp oldid 1123855791, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
