‘Whiteballed’: Randolph Churchill, The Conservative Union and the Liverpool Conservative Party, 1935
2020; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 57; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1080/0078172x.2020.1748356
ISSN1745-8706
Autores Tópico(s)Irish and British Studies
ResumoIn January 1935, Randolph Churchill, the son of Winston, announced that he intended to stand in a by-election in what was considered the safe Tory seat of Liverpool Wavertree. Churchill, however, was not the official Conservative Party candidate: he was an ‘Independent Conservative’ standing on a platform of opposition to the Government of India Bill and the need for a larger air force. His campaign morphed into a crusade against the Liverpool Conservative Party and in particular its leader, Sir Thomas White. The Liverpool Conservative Party had, through a series of local ‘bosses’, controlled the city for a generation. During the inter-war period questions were raised about its methods, including overbearing caucus management and a pandering to sectarianism. Churchill’s campaign, which lasted between March and November 1935, brought these issues to the fore. In eleven eventful months, Churchill stood in two parliamentary elections, attempted to overthrow the central organisation, lost a libel case and alienated almost everyone in the city. Churchill claimed that the rejection of his campaign by the Liverpool Conservative Party amounted to him being ‘whiteballed’ – a reference to the local leader. This article is the first time these events have been covered in significant detail.
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