William Ewart Gladstone
1-William Ewart Gladstone (1809 –1898) was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times (1868–1874, 1880–1885, February–July 1886 and 1892–1894), more than any other person.
2-Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time. He had also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer four times (1853–1855, 1859–1866, 1873–1874, and 1880–1882).
3-Gladstone first entered Parliament in 1832. Beginning as a High Tory, Gladstone served in the Cabinet of Sir Robert Peel. After the split of the Conservatives Gladstone was a Peelite – in 1859 the Peelites merged with the Whigs and the Radicals to form the Liberal Party.
4- As Chancellor Gladstone became committed to low public spending and to electoral reform, earning him the sobriquet "The People's William".
5-Gladstone's first ministry saw many reforms including Disestablishment of the Church of Ireland and the introduction ofsecret voting. After his electoral defeat in 1874, Gladstone resigned as leader of the Liberal Party, but from 1876 began a comeback based on opposition to Turkey's Bulgarian atrocities.
6-Gladstone's Midlothian Campaign of 1879–1880 was an early example of many modern political campaigning techniques. After the 1880 election, he formed his second ministry, which saw crises in Egypt (culminating in the death of General Gordon in 1885), and in Ireland, where the government passed repressive measures but also improved the legal rights of Irish tenant farmers. The government also passed theThird Reform Act.
7-Back in office in early 1886, Gladstone proposed Irish Home Rule (devolution); however, this was defeated in the House of Commons in July. The resulting split in the Liberal Party helped keep them out of office, with one short break, for twenty years.
8-In 1892 Gladstone formed his last government at the age of 82. The Second Irish Home Rule Bill passed the Commons but was defeated in the Lords in 1893. Gladstone resigned in March 1894, in opposition to increased naval expenditure. He left Parliament in 1895 and died three years later aged 88.
9-Gladstone is famous for his oratory, for his rivalry with the Conservative Leader Benjamin Disraeli and his poor relations withQueen Victoria, who once complained, "He always addresses me as if I were a public meeting."Gladstone was known affectionately by his supporters as "The People's William" or the "G.O.M." ("Grand Old Man", or, according to Disraeli, "God's Only Mistake").
Benjamin Disraeli
1-Benjamin Disraeli, (1804 –1881) was a British Prime Minister, parliamentarian, Conservative statesman and literary figure. Starting from comparatively humble origins, he served in government for three decades, twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played an instrumental role in the creation of the modern Conservative Party after the Corn Laws schism of 1846.
2-Although a major figure in the protectionist wing of the Conservative Party after 1844, Disraeli's relations with the other leading figures in the party, particularly Lord Derby, the overall leader, were often strained. Not until the 1860s would Derby and Disraeli be on easy terms, and the latter's succession of the former assured.
3-From 1852 onwards, Disraeli's career would also be marked by his often intense rivalry with William Ewart Gladstone, who eventually rose to become leader of theLiberal Party. In this feud, Disraeli was aided by his warm friendship with Queen Victoria, who came to detest Gladstone during the latter's first premiership in the 1870s. In 1876 Disraeli was raised to the peerage as the Earl of Beaconsfield, capping nearly four decades in the House of Commons.
4-Before and during his political career, Disraeli was well known as a literary and social figure, although his novels are not generally regarded as a part of the Victorian literary canon. He mainly wrote romances, of which Sybil and Vivian Grey are perhaps the best-known today.
5-He is exceptional among British Prime Ministers for having gained equal social and political renown. He was twice successful as the Glasgow University Conservative Association's candidate for Rector of the University, holding the post for two full terms between 1871 and 1877.
There is no doubt that the two statesmen hated each other. They had been leaders of their respective parties since 1868, but were dominant figures long before that. They had very different social origins. Gladstone was a quintessential member of the rich upper middle class educated at Eton and Disraeli's parents were of Italian Jewish descent.
Disreali’s youth was as disreputable as Gladstone's was respectable. Gladstone's role model was Sir Robert Peel, leader of the Conservative party; Disraeli's an amalgam of Burke, Bolingbroke and Byron.Gladstone had always regarded the Church as his preferred profession.Disraeli was educated at obscure schools and never went to a university.Following are the areas of coincide and clashes between these two leaders.
1-Foriegn and imperial policy
When they clashed
A-Bulgarian horrors and the question of the east.
B-Imperial wars and the Midlothian campaign.
When they coincided
A-Both against cost of war.
B-Both accepted the "white man's burden".
2-Domestic and social policy
When they clashed
A-Parliamentary reform in the 1860's.
B-Meritocratic reform.
C-Ireland.
When they coincided
A-Accepted the need for limited social reform.
B-Accepted the need for extending the electorate.
3-Economic policy/state
When they clashed
A-1852 budget.
B-Gladstone's attack on Disraeli's budget speech.
When they coincided
A-Laissez faire.
B-Low taxation/public spending
C-Acceptance of free trade.
4-Religion and church
When they clashed
A-Disestablishment of Irish church.
B-Universities test act.
When they coincided
A-Both supported C of E.
B-Both supported Jewish disabilities.
5-Monarchy
When they clashed
A-Queen as Empress of India.
B-Perogative of the Monarch.
When they coincided
A-Both respected the institution.
B-Wanted to bring the Queen out of seclusion.
6-Class system
When they clashed
A-Attitudes towards the middle classes.
B-Attitude towards the working classes/mass public opinion.
Attitude to the landowners/House of Lords.
When they coincided
A-Accepted the hereditory principle..
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