This book is a thematic study of the Conservative Party during one of the most significant and successful periods in its history. The creation of a democratic franchise in 1918 was followed by nearly three decades of Conservative dominance: it was the largest party in the House of Commons and in government for almost 25 years between 1918 and 1945. Stuart Ball begins with an analysis of the foundations of Conservatism: its principles, attitudes and identities. He then examines the nature of the party’s support at general elections by matching voting patterns to the occupational data in the 193 ... More

This book is a thematic study of the Conservative Party during one of the most significant and successful periods in its history. The creation of a democratic franchise in 1918 was followed by nearly three decades of Conservative dominance: it was the largest party in the House of Commons and in government for almost 25 years between 1918 and 1945. Stuart Ball begins with an analysis of the foundations of Conservatism: its principles, attitudes and identities. He then examines the nature of the party’s support at general elections by matching voting patterns to the occupational data in the 1931 census. The book then investigates the Conservative Party as a organism, uncovering the composition, roles and relationships of every level from the constituency grass-roots, through the party machine and Parliament, to the Cabinet Ministers and the Party Leaders. The study is based upon a wide range of sources, including the personal papers of 140 leading figures and backbench MPs. This has been combined with the rich resources of the Conservative Party Archive, and more than 200 collections of local constituency association records from all parts of England, Scotland and Wales. The resulting analysis sheds new light on topics which are essential to an understanding of both the Conservative Party and British history in the twentieth century.