Disraeli and Gladstone Flashcards
1
Q
Who was William Gladstone
A
- He served as colonial secretary (1845-46) in a conservative government before becoming the leader of the newly formed Liberal Party from 1868.
- He was influenced by his other’s commitment to Scottish non-conformism
- It was argued that Gladstone was, at heart, a domestic politician whose views were anti-imperialist and non-interventionalist –> he had little enthusiasm for colonial expansion.
- the ‘reluctant imperialist’.
2
Q
What were Disraeli’s and Conservatives’ attitudes to the Empire
A
- Disraeli began to assert that the conservatives were the party of Empire and that the liberals would allow it to crumble.
- He presented this new perspective in his Crystal Palace speech in 1872 – arguing that it was the government’s duty to reconstruct the colonial Empire.
- As PM, Disraeli established the conservative party’s imperial attitudes and agenda by buying £4 m worth of Suez Canal shares in 1875. This gave Britain a permanent strategic interest in the area.
- Disraeli steered the Royal Titles Act through the House of Commons in order to bestow the title of ‘Empress of India’ on Queen Victoria in 1877 which was a means to establish British control over India.
3
Q
What were Gladstone’s and the Liberal’s attitudes to the Empire
A
- According to Gladstone, Britain should concentrate on developing existing colonies, helping them towards self-government.
-> He distinguished between ‘imperialism’ which he opposed and ‘empire’ which he supported. - During the Mahdist Rebellion in the Sudan in 1884, Gladstone urged the withdrawal of Anglo-Egyptian troops and reflected that the Sudanese were ‘rightly struggling to be free’.
- Despite his principles, Gladstone became embroiled in Egypt, not for its own sake but for the sake of safe
passage to India but also as a result of public and press pressure. Arabi Pasha’s uprising of 1881 threatened the security of the Suez Canal, European lives and British investments (he himself had a large personal investment there) in Egypt.
-> Once order was restored in 1882, Khedive Tewfiq was installed as a ruler in Britain’s newest occupies territory.
