Hodge was the son of Archibald Hodge of Hoole Park, Chester who had been miner in Fife. He was educated at the former Chester Cathedral Choir School. The school closed in 1975.[1] He qualified as a chartered accountant and practised in Chester from the age of 21 but he relinquished this profession in favour of the law and was called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1917 and practiced law on the Northern Circuit. In the same year he married Anna Fortunée the daughter of Michel Venture a shipowner from Marseille. They had a daughter and a son. His wife died in 1944.
At the general election of 1923, each of the political parties decided to stand only one candidate. The Tories thought seriously about putting up two candidates in the two member constituency on the grounds that this would have split the anti-Tory vote for the second seat and would have strongly discouraged their supporters from using the second vote for a Liberal or Labour candidate.[3] In the event, Hodge held his seat.
1923-24 saw the arrival of the first Labour government under Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald. The Conservatives had won the most seats but had lost their overall majority. The general election produced a hung parliament and Labour took office as a minority administration with the support of the Liberals. However their position was precarious and although the Liberals were desperate to avoid a third general election in three years, it was Liberal action in Parliament which started the process which led the downfall of the government. Hodge, however, was one of 12 rebel Liberals who supported the government in the crucial parliamentary vote of October 1924 which in effect brought about the end of the first Labour government.[4] It was not enough to ensure he held his seat however as he lost at Preston at the 1924 general election, his seat being taken by a Conservative. At first he remained as Liberal parliamentary candidate for Preston but gave up citing ill health in 1927.[5] However he seems to have been well enough to carry on his legal practice at least until 1929.[6]
Outside Parliamentedit
Hodge took part in sculling, played golf and took a strong interest in Theology.
james, hodge, politician, james, philip, hodge, december, 1879, july, 1946, british, liberal, politician, lawyer, contents, family, education, military, service, politics, outside, parliament, sources, references, external, linksfamily, education, edithodge, a. James Philip Hodge 13 December 1879 12 July 1946 was a British Liberal politician and lawyer Contents 1 Family amp education 2 Military service 3 Politics 4 Outside Parliament 5 Sources 6 References 7 External linksFamily amp education editHodge was the son of Archibald Hodge of Hoole Park Chester who had been miner in Fife He was educated at the former Chester Cathedral Choir School The school closed in 1975 1 He qualified as a chartered accountant and practised in Chester from the age of 21 but he relinquished this profession in favour of the law and was called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1917 and practiced law on the Northern Circuit In the same year he married Anna Fortunee the daughter of Michel Venture a shipowner from Marseille They had a daughter and a son His wife died in 1944 Military service editBefore the First World War Hodge served as a private in the Inns of Court Officers Training Corps He later obtained a commission in the Army Pay Department and went to France in 1914 He also served in Salonika and Egypt He was subsequently appointed Inspector of Pay Offices with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel Politics editHodge was Liberal MP for Preston from 1922 to 1924 Preston was a two member seat at that time In the 1922 general election the Labour candidate topped the poll with Hodge taking the second seat from the sitting Conservative member George Frederick Stanley 2 At the general election of 1923 each of the political parties decided to stand only one candidate The Tories thought seriously about putting up two candidates in the two member constituency on the grounds that this would have split the anti Tory vote for the second seat and would have strongly discouraged their supporters from using the second vote for a Liberal or Labour candidate 3 In the event Hodge held his seat 1923 24 saw the arrival of the first Labour government under Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald The Conservatives had won the most seats but had lost their overall majority The general election produced a hung parliament and Labour took office as a minority administration with the support of the Liberals However their position was precarious and although the Liberals were desperate to avoid a third general election in three years it was Liberal action in Parliament which started the process which led the downfall of the government Hodge however was one of 12 rebel Liberals who supported the government in the crucial parliamentary vote of October 1924 which in effect brought about the end of the first Labour government 4 It was not enough to ensure he held his seat however as he lost at Preston at the 1924 general election his seat being taken by a Conservative At first he remained as Liberal parliamentary candidate for Preston but gave up citing ill health in 1927 5 However he seems to have been well enough to carry on his legal practice at least until 1929 6 Outside Parliament editHodge took part in sculling played golf and took a strong interest in Theology Sources editWho was Who OUP 2007 Obituary The Times 15 July 1946 See also List of Liberal Party UK MPsReferences edit Chester Cathedral Choir School Archived 4 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine at www ccoca co uk The Times 16 11 22 The Times 24 11 23 Roy Douglas The History of the Liberal Party 1895 1970 Sidgwick amp Jackson 1971 p180 The Times 14 10 27 The Times 8 5 29 5 7 29 amp 11 7 29External links editHansard 1803 2005 contributions in Parliament by James Philip Hodge Parliament of the United Kingdom Preceded byGeorge Frederick StanleyTom Shaw Member of Parliament for Preston1922 1924 With Tom Shaw Succeeded byAlfred Ravenscroft KennedyTom Shaw Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title James Hodge politician amp oldid 1058642362, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
