British Constitution Association
Encyclopedia
The British Constitution Association, founded in 1905 as the British Constitutional Association, was a pressure group designed to oppose increasing state regulation, whether from the Liberal Party
's New Liberalism
or Joseph Chamberlain
's proposals for Tariff Reform. It has been described as "a curious mixture of unionist free traders, orthodox poor law administrators, and followers of Herbert Spencer
".
Its first president was Lord Hugh Cecil
, who was succeeded by Lord Balfour of Burleigh
. Its supporters included the constitutional expert A. V. Dicey
, Lord Avebury
, Lord Courtney
, John St Loe Strachey, Professor Flinders Petrie, Thomas Mackay
, and Hugh Elliott
.
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
's New Liberalism
New Liberalism
New Liberalism may refer to:*New Liberalism *New liberalism as a synonym for social liberalism*New Liberalism , a party...
or Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain was an influential British politician and statesman. Unlike most major politicians of the time, he was a self-made businessman and had not attended Oxford or Cambridge University....
's proposals for Tariff Reform. It has been described as "a curious mixture of unionist free traders, orthodox poor law administrators, and followers of Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer was an English philosopher, biologist, sociologist, and prominent classical liberal political theorist of the Victorian era....
".
Its first president was Lord Hugh Cecil
Hugh Cecil, 1st Baron Quickswood
Hugh Richard Heathcote Gascoyne-Cecil, 1st Baron Quickswood PC , styled Lord Hugh Cecil until 1941, was a British Conservative Party politician.-Background and education:...
, who was succeeded by Lord Balfour of Burleigh
Alexander Bruce, 6th Lord Balfour of Burleigh
Alexander Hugh Bruce, 6th Lord Balfour of Burleigh KT GCMG GCVO PC DL JP was a Scottish Unionist politician, banker and statesman, who took a leading part in the affairs of the Church of Scotland...
. Its supporters included the constitutional expert A. V. Dicey
A. V. Dicey
- References :...
, Lord Avebury
John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury
John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury PC , FRS , known as Sir John Lubbock, 4th Baronet from 1865 until 1900, was a polymath and Liberal Member of Parliament....
, Lord Courtney
Leonard Courtney, 1st Baron Courtney of Penwith
Leonard Henry Courtney, 1st Baron Courtney of Penwith PC was a British politician, academic and man of letters...
, John St Loe Strachey, Professor Flinders Petrie, Thomas Mackay
Thomas Mackay
Thomas Mackay was a British wine merchant and classical liberal.Mackay, the son of a colonel, was born in Edinburgh and educated at Glenalmond and New College, Oxford. He was called to the bar in 1879 but left to enter the wine trade because he felt that he was not earning enough to support his...
, and Hugh Elliott
Hugh Elliott
Sir Hugh Francis Ivo Elliott, 3rd Baronet was an eminent British ornithologist and administrator of Tristan da Cunha . He attended University College, Oxford, was editor of the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club and was president of the British Ornithologists' Union from 1975 to 1979...
.
Further reading
- M. H. Judge (ed.), Political Socialism. A Remonstrance. A Collection of Papers by Members of the British Constitution Association (Westminster, 1908).