John Bannerman, Baron Bannerman of Kildonan
Encyclopedia
John MacDonald Bannerman, Baron Bannerman of Kildonan OBE (1 September 1901 – 10 May 1969; Scottish Gaelic: Iain mac Iain Mac-a'-Bhrataich) was a Scottish
farmer, rugby union
internationalist and Liberal
politician.
in 1901, Bannerman was the son of John Roderick Bannerman, a Post Office employee originally from the Hebridean island of South Uist
but living in Glasgow
at the time of his son's birth. John Bannerman always treasured his Highland heritage and was a native Gaelic speaker. Bannerman was educated at Shawlands Academy
and Glasgow High School
. He graduated from the University of Glasgow
with a Bachelor of Science and then went on to Balliol College, Oxford and later to Cornell University
in the United States. In 1931 he married Ray Mundell and they had two sons and two daughters. One of their daughters was the Liberal Democrat
MP, Ray Michie
(later Baroness Michie of Gallanach). The historian John Bannerman
was his son, and David "Shade" Munro
, the rugby player and coach was his grandson.
while at school, and between 1919–20, he was captain of Glasgow High School
's 1st XV.
Bannerman was an accomplished sportsman winning a "rugby blue" at Oxford
and 37 caps for Scotland
between 1921 and 1929.
He went on to become Glasgow HSFP
's most capped player.
In 1954-55, Bannerman served as President of the Scottish Rugby Union
.
. In 1952 Bannerman left the Montrose estate to become a farmer in his own interests and also that year became an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to the Festival of Britain
.
. When the seat fell vacant in 1940 it was mooted that Bannerman might run as a Liberal National
but the negotiations with the Conservatives broke down robbing him of his best chance of entering the House of Commons. He contested Argyll unsuccessfully in the 1945 general election
and Inverness
in 1950
. But in 1954 he was the candidate in an extraordinary by-election at Inverness
which some historians have seen as a true turning point in Liberal fortunes in Scotland and perhaps the United Kingdom. From a position where there had been no Liberal candidate in the 1951 election
, Bannerman jumped into second place over Labour, coming just 1331 votes behind the Tory winner. This was the best Liberal by-election performance since the war. At the general election of 1955
, Bannerman came even closer, losing by just 966 votes. Although his vote share declined in the 1959 general election
, the ground had been laid for a successful attack on the seat in the 1964 general election
by Russell Johnston
, who held the seat until he retired from the Commons in 1997.
Bannerman was chairman of the Scottish Liberal Party
from 1954 to 1964 and Rector of Aberdeen University in 1957. He made other attempts to enter the Commons, including giving Labour a close run at the Paisley
by-election of 1961
, registering a swing of 18.8% in a seat where there had been no Liberal candidate at the 1959 general election. He tried again without success at Paisley at the 1964 general election
but in December 1967 he was made Baron Bannerman of Kildonan, of Kildonan in the County of Sutherland
, and so finally entered Parliament.
and John Foot
. Their appointments were attacked by the Young Liberals
as undemocratic. One particular critic was Tony Greaves
, then editor of the Young Liberal publication Gunfire who argued that as the Liberal Party was in favour of a new social and political order, it was quite wrong to participate in the most pathetic feature of the existing order, the House of Lords. Greaves became Baron Greaves of Pendle in 2000.
In his maiden speech in the Lords, Bannerman took up the Scottish cause referring to the anger of Hamilton
where the Scottish National Party
had just won a Parliamentary by-election and warning it was the anger of two centuries in which the Scots had been what he described as a sleeping partner in the United Kingdom political scene.
He died in Tidworth
, Hampshire
, on 10 May 1969 aged 67.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
farmer, rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
internationalist and Liberal
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...
politician.
Family and education
Born in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
in 1901, Bannerman was the son of John Roderick Bannerman, a Post Office employee originally from the Hebridean island of South Uist
South Uist
South Uist is an island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. In the 2001 census it had a usually resident population of 1,818. There is a nature reserve and a number of sites of archaeological interest, including the only location in Great Britain where prehistoric mummies have been found. The...
but living in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
at the time of his son's birth. John Bannerman always treasured his Highland heritage and was a native Gaelic speaker. Bannerman was educated at Shawlands Academy
Shawlands Academy
Shawlands Academy is a non-denominational secondary school on the southside of Glasgow, Scotland.-Admissions:It has a roll of approximately 1,250 pupils and 90 teachers...
and Glasgow High School
High School of Glasgow
The High School of Glasgow is an independent, co-educational day school in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded as the Choir School of Glasgow Cathedral in around 1124, it is the oldest school in Scotland, and the twelfth oldest in the United Kingdom. It remained part of the Church as the city's grammar...
. He graduated from the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
with a Bachelor of Science and then went on to Balliol College, Oxford and later to Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in the United States. In 1931 he married Ray Mundell and they had two sons and two daughters. One of their daughters was the Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
MP, Ray Michie
Ray Michie, Baroness Michie of Gallanach
Janet Ray Michie, Baroness Michie of Gallanach was a British speech therapist and Liberal Democrat politician. She served as Member of Parliament for Argyll and Bute for 14 years, from 1987 to 2001, and then became a life peer in the House of Lords...
(later Baroness Michie of Gallanach). The historian John Bannerman
John Bannerman (historian)
John Walter MacDonald Bannerman was a Scottish historian, noted for his work on Gaelic Scotland.He was born in Balmaha, Stirlingshire, the son of John MacDonald Bannerman, later Lord Bannerman of Kildonan, and his wife Ray Mundell...
was his son, and David "Shade" Munro
Shade Munro
Donald "Shade" Munro is a Scottish rugby union player, who played at lock/second row.He was selected to tour New Zealand in 1990 , the year of Scotland's 2nd Grand Slam, but he unfortunately suffered an horrendous leg break playing for Scotland against a West of Scotland International Select...
, the rugby player and coach was his grandson.
Rugby union
Bannerman started playing rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
while at school, and between 1919–20, he was captain of Glasgow High School
High School of Glasgow
The High School of Glasgow is an independent, co-educational day school in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded as the Choir School of Glasgow Cathedral in around 1124, it is the oldest school in Scotland, and the twelfth oldest in the United Kingdom. It remained part of the Church as the city's grammar...
's 1st XV.
Bannerman was an accomplished sportsman winning a "rugby blue" at Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
and 37 caps for Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
between 1921 and 1929.
He went on to become Glasgow HSFP
Glasgow Hawks
Glasgow Hawks are an amateur rugby union team in Glasgow, Scotland. They were Premiership Division One champions for 3 consecutive seasons from 2003/04 to 2005/06.-The short history of Glasgow Hawks RFC:...
's most capped player.
In 1954-55, Bannerman served as President of the Scottish Rugby Union
Scottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
.
Career
In 1930, Bannerman was appointed as a farm manager on land owned by the Duke of MontroseJames Graham, 6th Duke of Montrose
James Graham, 6th Duke of Montrose KT CB CVO VD was a Scottish nobleman, politician and engineer.The eldest son of Douglas Graham, 5th Duke of Montrose, he was educated at Eton College. In 1906 he married Lady Mary Douglas-Hamilton, the only child of the 12th Duke of Hamilton...
. In 1952 Bannerman left the Montrose estate to become a farmer in his own interests and also that year became an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to the Festival of Britain
Festival of Britain
The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition in Britain in the summer of 1951. It was organised by the government to give Britons a feeling of recovery in the aftermath of war and to promote good quality design in the rebuilding of British towns and cities. The Festival's centrepiece was in...
.
Politics
Bannerman became active in Liberal politics from the 1930s. He was particularly interested in the problems of depopulation and unemployment for ordinary people in the Scottish Highlands and islands. From 1942 to 1957 he was a Forestry Commissioner. In 1938 he was adopted as prospective Liberal parliamentary candidate for ArgyllArgyllshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Argyllshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1800 and of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 until 1950, when it was renamed Argyll...
. When the seat fell vacant in 1940 it was mooted that Bannerman might run as a Liberal National
National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)
The National Liberal Party, known until 1948 as the Liberal National Party, was a liberal political party in the United Kingdom from 1931 to 1968...
but the negotiations with the Conservatives broke down robbing him of his best chance of entering the House of Commons. He contested Argyll unsuccessfully in the 1945 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
and Inverness
Inverness (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election....
in 1950
United Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
. But in 1954 he was the candidate in an extraordinary by-election at Inverness
Inverness by-election, 1954
The Inverness by-election, 1954 was a by-election held on 21 December 1954 for the British House of Commons constituency of Inverness.The by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting Unionist Member of Parliament Lord Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton, by his application for the Chiltern Hundreds...
which some historians have seen as a true turning point in Liberal fortunes in Scotland and perhaps the United Kingdom. From a position where there had been no Liberal candidate in the 1951 election
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
, Bannerman jumped into second place over Labour, coming just 1331 votes behind the Tory winner. This was the best Liberal by-election performance since the war. At the general election of 1955
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
, Bannerman came even closer, losing by just 966 votes. Although his vote share declined in the 1959 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
, the ground had been laid for a successful attack on the seat in the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
by Russell Johnston
Russell Johnston, Baron Russell-Johnston
David Russell Russell-Johnston, Baron Russell-Johnston, usually known as Russell Johnston, was a leading Scottish Liberal Democrat politician.-Early life:...
, who held the seat until he retired from the Commons in 1997.
Bannerman was chairman of the Scottish Liberal Party
Scottish Liberal Party
The Scottish Liberal Party was the dominant political party of Victorian Scotland, and although its importance declined with the rise of the Labour and Unionist parties during the 20th century, it was still a significant force when it finally merged with the Social Democratic Party in Scotland, to...
from 1954 to 1964 and Rector of Aberdeen University in 1957. He made other attempts to enter the Commons, including giving Labour a close run at the Paisley
Paisley (UK Parliament constituency)
Paisley was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832 until 1983, when it was divided into Paisley North and Paisley South...
by-election of 1961
Paisley by-election, 1961
The Paisley by-election, 1961 was a parliamentary by-election held on 20 April 1961 for the British House of Commons constituency of Paisley in Scotland....
, registering a swing of 18.8% in a seat where there had been no Liberal candidate at the 1959 general election. He tried again without success at Paisley at the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
but in December 1967 he was made Baron Bannerman of Kildonan, of Kildonan in the County of Sutherland
Sutherland
Sutherland is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic administrative county of Scotland. It is now within the Highland local government area. In Gaelic the area is referred to according to its traditional areas: Dùthaich 'IcAoidh , Asainte , and Cataibh...
, and so finally entered Parliament.
Life peerage
Bannerman was one of three Liberals to be made life peers at this time. The others were Tim BeaumontTimothy Beaumont, Baron Beaumont of Whitley
Timothy Wentworth Beaumont, Baron Beaumont of Whitley was a United Kingdom politician and an Anglican clergyman. He was politically active, successively, in the Liberal Party, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party...
and John Foot
John Foot, Baron Foot
John Mackintosh Foot, Baron Foot was a Liberal politician and Life Peer.Foot was born in Plymouth, Devon, the son of Isaac Foot and the brother of Sir Dingle Foot, QC, Hugh Foot, Baron Caradon and Michael Foot. His nephew was the late journalist Paul Foot...
. Their appointments were attacked by the Young Liberals
National League of Young Liberals
The National League of Young Liberals , often just called the Young Liberals, was the youth wing of the British Liberal Party. It was founded in 1903 and by 1906 it had over three hundred branches. In 1934 it called for David Lloyd George to lead a Liberal New Deal revival based on the Yellow Book...
as undemocratic. One particular critic was Tony Greaves
Tony Greaves, Baron Greaves
Anthony Robert Greaves, Baron Greaves is a UK politician. He is a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords.Together with Gordon Lishman, Greaves moved the party's famous Community Politics motion...
, then editor of the Young Liberal publication Gunfire who argued that as the Liberal Party was in favour of a new social and political order, it was quite wrong to participate in the most pathetic feature of the existing order, the House of Lords. Greaves became Baron Greaves of Pendle in 2000.
In his maiden speech in the Lords, Bannerman took up the Scottish cause referring to the anger of Hamilton
Hamilton, South Lanarkshire
Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the west-central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area. It is the fifth-biggest town in Scotland after Paisley, East Kilbride, Livingston and Cumbernauld...
where the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
had just won a Parliamentary by-election and warning it was the anger of two centuries in which the Scots had been what he described as a sleeping partner in the United Kingdom political scene.
He died in Tidworth
Tidworth
Tidworth is a town in south-east Wiltshire, England with a growing civilian population. Situated at the eastern edge of Salisbury Plain, it is approximately 10 miles west of Andover, 12 miles south of Marlborough, 24 miles south of Swindon, 15 miles north by north-east of Salisbury and 6 miles east...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, on 10 May 1969 aged 67.