Liverpool Protestant Party
Encyclopedia
The Liverpool Protestant Party (LPP) was a minor political party
operating in the city of Liverpool
in northwest England
.
felt by many Orange Lodge
members and other militant Protestants
in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.
This unease was caused by a number of issues:-
The fact that the Conservative Prime Minister, Arthur Balfour
, was related to the aristocratic Rosebery family, leading lights of the Anglo-Catholic
movement, did little to assuage this disquiet.
The first attempt to secure independent Protestant representation was made by John Kensit
leader of the Protestant Truth Society
, who stood for Parliament
in Brighton
in 1898. In Ireland
this unease manifested itself in the creation of the Independent Orange Order
in Belfast
in 1902.
to set aside areas of public open space specifically for outdoor meetings. George Wise, a prominent local Protestant leader, had been imprisoned for refusing to be bound over to keep the peace following disturbances at meetings held in public squares and gardens. On his release from Walton Gaol
on 6 June he decided to pursue independent Protestant representation on the City Council.
Support was centred among Wise's adherents including large numbers of members of the Orange Order
and the congregation of the Protestant Reformers Church of which he was the Pastor. Traditionally the "orange vote" would go to the Conservatives
but in 1903, the LPP was formed as a distinct party by George Wise.
. Representation was also secured on the West Derby
Board of Guardians
, which supervised health care and poor relief in the North and East of the City. Some rapprochment with the Conservatives took place prior to World War I
through co-operation to fight the Irish Home Rule Bill
, although the Conservative leader in the city, Alderman Archibald Saldvidge was opposed to independent Protestant representation.
renewed dissatisfaction with them amongst militant Protestants. In Liverpool this was manifested in a loss of membership in the Conservative Workingmen's Association. The Liverpool Protestant Party believed the establishment of the Irish Free State was a mere stepping stone to an Irish republic
.
The National Protestant Electoral Federation (NPEF) was formed at this time with four aims:-
In Liverpool the policies of the NPEF were put into effect for the 1922 elections to the Boards of Guardians. The NPEF endorsed Protestant Party candidates and any other candidates who were willing to add the word Protestant to their party name. This resulted in two Protestant Party and two Protestant & Unionist candidates being elected with 25,787 votes between them.
abolished the Boards of Guardians and handed their responsibilities to local authorities. Liverpool Corporation took over three Boards – West Derby for the North and East of the City, Liverpool for the City Centre and Toxteth Park for the South. Some rationalisation of the various hospital and other facilities took place which meant that the Liverpool Board of Guardians 9 acres (36,421.7 m²) facility at Brownlow Hill became redundant. The City Council decided to sell the site to the Roman Catholic Church to build a Cathedral
. Sales of redundant land and property to Catholic interests had been blocked by Protestant representatives on the Boards, but under the Council the sale went ahead with Conservative approval.
This led to the Protestant Party contesting the City Council elections of November 1930. Only the party leader Pastor Longbottom was successful, in St Domingo, but in several wards
the Protestant Party took enough votes from the Conservatives to cause them to lose them to Labour.
It opposed the emergent socialist politics of the Labour movement
and called for curbs on immigration into Great Britain
from Roman Catholic
areas of Ireland
. It also blamed Irish immigrants for unemployment, poor housing and high rates.
It primarily fought local government seats, but did stand the Reverend H. D. Longbottom in the Liverpool Kirkdale
seat for Westminster
elections from 1931 until 1945. In 1931, he took a quarter of the votes cast. It had a number of councillors throughout their existence, even as late as the 1960s. It won its last seat in 1973 but activity was waning and as the "orange vote" subsided in influence the LPP found it harder to continue. In 1974 its members were invited to subsume themselves into the local Conservative Party, which they subsequently did.
The "orange vote" has not totally died in Liverpool. The Democratic Unionist Party
has looked into the possibility of establishing a branch in Liverpool, possibly considering standing local government candidates there as well. Former members of the LPP have been involved with this attempt.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
operating in the city of Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
in northwest England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Origins and Context
The origins of the Liverpool Protestant Party lie in the increasing dissatisfaction with the Conservative and Unionist PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
felt by many Orange Lodge
Orange Institution
The Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...
members and other militant Protestants
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.
This unease was caused by a number of issues:-
- The use of the Conservative whip in parliament to oppose the extension of factory inspectionFactory ActsThe Factory Acts were a series of Acts passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to limit the number of hours worked by women and children first in the textile industry, then later in all industries....
to convent laundries
- The Education Act 1902Education Act 1902The Education Act 1902 , also known as Balfour's Act, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom affecting education in England and Wales. At the time of passage of the Act, the Conservative Party was in power...
making public money available to Roman CatholicRoman Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
Schools (“Rome on the Rates”)
- The failure to enact a new Church Discipline Act, or amend the old one, to provide for a more effective counter to extreme ritualism in the Church of EnglandChurch of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
The fact that the Conservative Prime Minister, Arthur Balfour
Arthur Balfour
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, KG, OM, PC, DL was a British Conservative politician and statesman...
, was related to the aristocratic Rosebery family, leading lights of the Anglo-Catholic
Anglo-Catholicism
The terms Anglo-Catholic and Anglo-Catholicism describe people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism that affirm the Catholic, rather than Protestant, heritage and identity of the Anglican churches....
movement, did little to assuage this disquiet.
The first attempt to secure independent Protestant representation was made by John Kensit
John Kensit
John Kensit was an English religious leader and polemicist.In 1889 he founded the Protestant Truth Society to oppose what he saw as the excessive influence of the Oxford Movement on the Church of England, despite the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874.Kensit died in October 1902, of pneumonia and...
leader of the Protestant Truth Society
Protestant Truth Society
The Protestant Truth Society is a charity and campaigning organisation that seeks to promote the Protestant faith in the UK, both in spiritual and doctrinal matters, and in the way that the country is governed...
, who stood for Parliament
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
in Brighton
Brighton (UK Parliament constituency)
Brighton was a parliamentary constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832 until it was divided into single-member seats from the United Kingdom general election, 1950...
in 1898. In Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
this unease manifested itself in the creation of the Independent Orange Order
Independent Orange Order
The Independent Loyal Orange Institution is an off-shoot of the Orange Institution, a Protestant fraternal organisation based in Northern Ireland.-Foundation:...
in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
in 1902.
Formation
Locally within Liverpool there was disquiet due to the reluctance of the Conservative controlled CorporationLiverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
to set aside areas of public open space specifically for outdoor meetings. George Wise, a prominent local Protestant leader, had been imprisoned for refusing to be bound over to keep the peace following disturbances at meetings held in public squares and gardens. On his release from Walton Gaol
Liverpool (HM Prison)
HM Prison Liverpool is a categoryB/C local men's prison, located in the Walton area of Liverpool in England. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.-History:...
on 6 June he decided to pursue independent Protestant representation on the City Council.
Support was centred among Wise's adherents including large numbers of members of the Orange Order
Orange Institution
The Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...
and the congregation of the Protestant Reformers Church of which he was the Pastor. Traditionally the "orange vote" would go to the Conservatives
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
but in 1903, the LPP was formed as a distinct party by George Wise.
1903 to 1919
Four seats were contested and three won, including KirkdaleKirkdale, Liverpool
Kirkdale is a district of Liverpool, Merseyside, England and a Liverpool City Council ward that covers both Kirkdale and Vauxhall. At the 2001 Census the population was recorded as 15,653.-Description:...
. Representation was also secured on the West Derby
West Derby
West Derby is a suburb in the north of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is also a Liverpool City Council ward. At the 2001 Census, the population of the ward was 14,801 .-History:...
Board of Guardians
Board of Guardians
Boards of guardians were ad hoc authorities that administered Poor Law in the United Kingdom from 1835 to 1930.-England and Wales:The boards were created by the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, replacing the parish Overseers of the Poor established under the old poor law, following the recommendations...
, which supervised health care and poor relief in the North and East of the City. Some rapprochment with the Conservatives took place prior to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
through co-operation to fight the Irish Home Rule Bill
Home Rule Act 1914
The Government of Ireland Act 1914 , also known as the Third Home Rule Bill, was an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom intended to provide self-government for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.The Act was the first law ever passed by the Parliament of...
, although the Conservative leader in the city, Alderman Archibald Saldvidge was opposed to independent Protestant representation.
1920-1930
The support of the Conservative Party for the establishment of the Irish Free StateIrish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
renewed dissatisfaction with them amongst militant Protestants. In Liverpool this was manifested in a loss of membership in the Conservative Workingmen's Association. The Liverpool Protestant Party believed the establishment of the Irish Free State was a mere stepping stone to an Irish republic
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
.
The National Protestant Electoral Federation (NPEF) was formed at this time with four aims:-
- The promotion of the study of Protestantism
- The maintenance of the Protestant succession to the throne (as established by the Act of Settlement 1701
- To assist the return of robust Protestants, irrespective of party, as representatives on public bodies
- To protect the interests of Protestant workers in Trade UnionsTrade unionA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
In Liverpool the policies of the NPEF were put into effect for the 1922 elections to the Boards of Guardians. The NPEF endorsed Protestant Party candidates and any other candidates who were willing to add the word Protestant to their party name. This resulted in two Protestant Party and two Protestant & Unionist candidates being elected with 25,787 votes between them.
1930 to 1945
The Local Government Act 1929Local Government Act 1929
The Local Government Act 1929 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made changes to the Poor Law and local government in England and Wales....
abolished the Boards of Guardians and handed their responsibilities to local authorities. Liverpool Corporation took over three Boards – West Derby for the North and East of the City, Liverpool for the City Centre and Toxteth Park for the South. Some rationalisation of the various hospital and other facilities took place which meant that the Liverpool Board of Guardians 9 acres (36,421.7 m²) facility at Brownlow Hill became redundant. The City Council decided to sell the site to the Roman Catholic Church to build a Cathedral
Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral
The Metropolitan Cathedral Church of Christ the King is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Liverpool and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool. The Metropolitan Cathedral is one of two cathedrals in the city...
. Sales of redundant land and property to Catholic interests had been blocked by Protestant representatives on the Boards, but under the Council the sale went ahead with Conservative approval.
This led to the Protestant Party contesting the City Council elections of November 1930. Only the party leader Pastor Longbottom was successful, in St Domingo, but in several wards
Wards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
the Protestant Party took enough votes from the Conservatives to cause them to lose them to Labour.
It opposed the emergent socialist politics of the Labour movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
and called for curbs on immigration into Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
from Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
areas of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. It also blamed Irish immigrants for unemployment, poor housing and high rates.
It primarily fought local government seats, but did stand the Reverend H. D. Longbottom in the Liverpool Kirkdale
Liverpool Kirkdale (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool Kirkdale was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom covering Kirkdale, Liverpool. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Members of Parliament :...
seat for Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
elections from 1931 until 1945. In 1931, he took a quarter of the votes cast. It had a number of councillors throughout their existence, even as late as the 1960s. It won its last seat in 1973 but activity was waning and as the "orange vote" subsided in influence the LPP found it harder to continue. In 1974 its members were invited to subsume themselves into the local Conservative Party, which they subsequently did.
The "orange vote" has not totally died in Liverpool. The Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
has looked into the possibility of establishing a branch in Liverpool, possibly considering standing local government candidates there as well. Former members of the LPP have been involved with this attempt.