The growing disillusionment of the electorate with both Conservative and Labour parties, and their inability to reverse decades of economic decline, provided Liberalism with renewed hope. Its popular new leader, Jo Grimond, together with spectacular by-election victories, and a new policy agenda, including support for UK entry to Europe, gave the party a new public profile. Although successive electoral revivals in the end petered out, the new concept of community politics was helping to build Liberal support at the grassroots.
History (8)
Biographies (12)
Journal articles (47)
Events (14)
Archives: libraries (9)
Archives: individuals (4)
PhD theses (12)
Research (2)
History
A concise history of the Liberal Party, SDP and Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are the successors to two important reformist traditions in British politics - those of liberalism and of social democracy, which became separated from each other in the early p...
National Sound Archive
The National Sound Archive at the British Library holds various recordings of key Liberal figures. ...
Realignment of the left
The end of Jo Grimond's leadership in 1967 heralded a bleak period for the Liberal Party. His successor, Jeremy Thorpe, was never assured of the complete confidence of his parliamentary colleagu...
The Liberals and Ireland since 1801
Underneath the surface of this [Irish question], and wrapped up in it, are nearly all the controversies of principle which will agitate the political atmosphere of our time. It is a microcosm of the ...
Grimond and the first post-war revival
The apogee of two-party politics in the UK was reached in the 1950s. At the 1955 election, the Conservative and Labour parties, and their allies, between them took 96.10 per cent of the vote and 98.7...
Community politics
Community Politics describes a particular style of locally organised campaigning on specifically local issues pioneered by the Liberal Party in the 1950s and 1960s and now practised by Liberal Democr...
Great Liberals
John Stuart Mill chosen as greatest British Liberal ...
Old heroes for a new leader
As we have done in each of the last two Liberal Democrat leadership elections, in 1999 and 2006, the Liberal Democrat History Group has asked both candidates for the Liberal Democrat leadership to wr...
Biographies
Biography of Lord Jo Grimond
Grimond, Jo (Lord Grimond)
Biography of Lord David Steel
Steel, David (Lord Steel)
Biography of Jeremy Thorpe
Thorpe, Jeremy
Biography of Lord Ralf Gustav Dahrendorf
Dahrendorf, Ralf (Lord Dahrendorf)
Biography of Elliot Dodds
Dodds, Elliot
Biography of Michael Meadowcroft
Meadowcroft, Michael
Biography of Violet Bonham Carter
Bonham Carter, Violet
Biography of Sir Dingle Foot
Foot, Dingle
Biography of Baron Jenkins of Hillhead Roy Jenkins
Jenkins, Roy (Lord Jenkins)
Biography, Maclennan, Robert (Lord Maclennan)
Maclennan, Robert (Lord Maclennan)
Biography of Baroness Shirley Williams
Williams, Shirley (Lady Williams)
Biography of Sir Clement Freud
Freud, Sir Clement
Journal articles
1959-74: years of Liberal revolution?
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
Introduction to this special issue on the Liberal postwar revival.
Report: The origins of community politics
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 4 ')
Report of LDHG meeting of June 1994 - a witness seminar on the origins of community politics, with Gordon Lishman
Third Party Politics Since 1945
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 2 ')
Review of John Stevenson, Third Party Politics Since 1945: Liberals, Alliance and Liberal Democrats
Report: why didn't the Liberal Party die?
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 16 ')
Report of LDHG meeting of March 1997 on the near death and survival of the Liberal Party in the 1950s and '60s, with William Wallace.
Not playing games
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 74 ')
The Young Liberals and anti-apartheid campaigns, 1968-70.
Jo Grimond's leadership of the Liberal Party
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
'The personification and the hope of postwar Liberalism.' The record of Jo Grimond.
Sheelagh Murnaghan and the Ulster Liberal Party
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 71 ')
The life and political career of the only Liberal to win a seat in the Northern Ireland parliament.
Lord Rea
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal Democrat History 27 ')
The career of Philip Russell Rea, (1900-81), the Liberal leader in the Lords in the 1950s and 60s.
Fighting Orpington
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
The stunning by-election victory of Orpington in 1962 was the high point of the first Liberal revival. Eric Lubbock (now Lord Avebury) was the candidate.
Jo Grimond's Liberalism
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 8 ')
Review of Peter Joyce, Giving Politics a Good Name: A Tribute to Jo and Laura Grimond
'Why I am a Liberal'
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 60 ')
The dynastic Liberalism of Michael and all the Foots.
Re-establishing the faith
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 76 ')
The revival of Liberalism in Dumfriesshire, 1931-63.
Young Liberals; the 'Red Guard' era
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal Democrat History 17 ')
The role of foreign policy issues in the growth of the Young Liberals in the 1960s and '70s.
The lessons of Orpington
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
Analysis of the importance of the by-election result for the Liberal Party.
1945-1964: The gory, gory years
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 7 ')
The survival and development of the Liberal Party in the post-war era.
Liberals and local government in London since the 1970s
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 58 ')
Report of meeting of 4 February 2008, with Cllr Sir David Williams and Mike Tuffrey GLA.
'Asking too much and offering too little'?
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 61 ')
The Conservative-Liberal coalition talks of 1-4 March 1974.
Interview: Cyril Smith
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 64 ')
An interview with Sir Cyril Smith MBE, the larger-than-life former MP for Rochdale and Chief Whip.
Archive: The Papers of Herbert Samuel at the Parliamentary Archives
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 65 ')
God gave the land to the people
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 76 ')
The origins of the Liberal Land Song.
The last Liberal imperialist
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal Democrat History 25 - Special issue: Crossing the Floor ')
Biography of Donald Johnson (1903-78), a self-styled 'political entrepreneur' who moved from the radical wing of the Liberal Party to become a Conservative MP.
Abortion reform 1967
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
Memories of the battles over one of the key pieces of social reform legislation of the 1960s.
Man of mystery: John Creasey
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 57 ')
The life of John Creasey (1908-73), Liberal candidate and author of almost 600 books.
Report: Torrington '58 - Liberal survival and revival, 1945-79
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 61 ')
Report of full-day seminar, with LSE, 14 June 2008.
Helen Suzman: An Appreciation
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 66 ')
Personal recollection of the life of South Africas first anti-apartheid MP.
Swinging in the 60s to the Liberals
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 68 ')
Mary Murphy and Pontypridd Urban District Council.
Russell Johnston
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 71 ')
Biography of this passionate and articulate exponent of Liberalism.
The Sutton & Cheam by-election
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
The Sutton & Cheam by-election was won for the Liberal Party in December 1972. Jennifer Tankard interviews the victor, Graham (now Lord) Tope.
The Left Foot
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 60 ')
Review of Kenneth O. Morgan, Michael Foot: A Life.
Young Liberal influence and its effects, 1970-74
(from journal ' Liberal Democrat History Group Newsletter 14 - Special issue: The Liberal revival ')
Young Liberals provided the Liberal Party with activists, candidates and radical ideas. This article examines the YL record of the early 1970s.
The Suez crisis
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 53 ')
Report of meeting of 3 July 2006, with Professor Peter Barberis.
Radical Reform Group
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 67 - Special issue: Liberals and the left ')
Examination of the group's formation, history and publications.
Red Guard versus Old Guard? The influence of the Young Liberal movement on the Liberal Party in the 1960s and 1970s
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 68 ')
Report of meeting of 12 March 2010; with Matt Cole, Michael Steed, William Wallace, George Kiloh, and Bernard Greaves. Chair: Tony Greaves.
Letters to the Editor
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 70 ')
Young Liberals (John Howe).
Northern Liberal
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 66 ')
Review of Alan Beith, A View from the North (Northumbria University Press, 2008).
'An out-of-date word'
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 67 - Special issue: Liberals and the left ')
Jo Grimond and the left.
Comprehensive Liberal history
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 73 ')
Review of Robert Ingham and Duncan Brack (eds.), Peace, Reform and Liberation: A History of Liberal Politics in Britain 16792011.
Whatever happened to 'Orpington Man'?
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 74 ')
Report of a Liberal Democrat History Group meeting at the National Liberal Club, 23 January 2012, with Dr Mark Egan and Professor Dennis Kavanagh.
Citizenship and democracy
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 53 ')
Review of Geoffrey Foote, The Republican Transformation of Modern British Politics
In further search of 'Orpington Man'
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 74 ')
A response to the report on the Liberal Democrat History Group meeting about 'Orpington Man'.
The Young Liberals and the left, 1965-70
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 67 - Special issue: Liberals and the left ')
The relationship between the Young Liberals and the left in the 1960s.
Survival and revival
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 71 ')
Review of Egan, Coming into Focus: The Transformation of the Liberal Party 1945-1964.
Policy and ideology
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 73 ')
Review of Tudor Jones, The Revival of British Liberalism - From Grimond to Clegg.
A Cold War Witness
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal Democrat History 25 - Special issue: Crossing the Floor ')
Review of Christopher Mayhew: A Cold War Witness
Review: A neglected party
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 64 ')
Review of Dutton, Liberals in Schism - A History of the National Liberal Party.
Evolving the constitution
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 72 - Special issue: The Liberal experience of coalition government ')
Review of Vernon Bogdanor, The Coalition and the Constitution.
Dissent over the airwaves
(from journal ' Journal of Liberal History 71 ')
Review of Johns, Death of a Pirate: British Radio and the Making of the Information Age.
Events
Jo Grimond - the legacy
Monday 10 June 2013
Jo Grimond, leader of the Liberal Party from 1956 to 1967, holds a particularly affectionate place in the collective memory of the Liberal Democrats. His charisma, charm, good looks, political courag...
Whatever happened to 'Orpington Man'?
Monday 23 January 2012
The Orpington by-election of March 1962 was a political landmark: a stunning victory for Jo Grimond's Liberal Party, as Eric Lubbock turned a Conservative majority of 14,760 into a Liberal major...
Peace, Reform and Liberation: launch of new Liberal history book
Monday 19 September 2011
Peace, Reform and Liberation is a comprehensive history of Liberal politics in Britain.
...
Lords Reform 1911-2011
Friday 11 March 2011
The 1911 Parliament Act, introduced in the wake of the rejection by the House of Lords of Lloyd Georges Peoples Budget and the two general elections of 1910, was the first successful reform of the po...
Red Guard versus Old Guard? The influence of the Young Liberal movement on the Liberal Party in the 1960s and 1970s a witness seminar
Friday 12 March 2010
In the 1960s and early 1970s the press coined the phrase the "Red Guard" to describe the radical politics of the youth wing of the Liberal Party. At the 1966 Party Conference in Brighton, t...
Torrington '58: Liberal survival and revival, 1945-79
Saturday 14 June 2008
On 27 March 1958, Mark Bonham Carter, Asquiths grandson, won the Parliamentary by-election in the Devon seat of Torrington by a margin of just 219 votes.
...
Liberals and local government in London since the 1970s
Monday 4 February 2008
Winning local elections has been a keystone in Liberal (Democrat) success in the years since the adoption of the community politics strategy at the Eastbourne Assembly in 1970. There have been many s...
Civil liberties in war and peace
Monday 24 January 2005
Law and order has long been a major issue in British politics.
...
Liberal Party General Election campaigns after 1945
Monday 3 February 2003
With David Butler, longstanding co-author and author of the acclaimed Nuffield General Election studies, and Neil Stockley, former Director of Policy, Liberal Democrats.
...
The Legacy of Jo Grimond - Remembering Jo
Sunday 22 September 2002
There were many at the Brighton Conference who were in no doubt that if it wasnt for a young, charismatic party leader they would have no party at all.
...
1974 Remembered
Sunday 19 September 1999
The two elections of 1974 formed a peak of the second post-war Liberal revival, giving the party six million votes but no more than fourteen MPs. Participants in the campaigns - including Tim Beaumon...
Why didn't the Liberal Party Die? The first Liberal revival, 1959-66
Friday 7 March 1997
After almost thirty years of continuous decline, the leadership of Jo Grimond, and byelection and local election victories, seemed to herald a new era for the Liberal Party. Why did it all go wrong? ...
Witness Seminar: The Origins of Community Politics
Tuesday 21 June 1994
Gordon Lishman discussed the background to the Eastbourne resolution of 1970, which first committed the Liberal Party to community politics. Topics covered included the electoral and campaigning cont...
Survival in the Balance: The Liberal Party after 1945
Monday 17 September 1990
Dr Stevenson examined the history of the Liberal Party after 1945, and its attempt to carve out an identity for itself in a hostile political world. He explored the historical dimension of the contin...
Archives: libraries
BLPES
Liberal Party Archives at the London School of Economics (BLPES) ...
archive url: http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/archive/
Bodleian Library, University of Oxford
Archive Collections relating to Liberal history at the Bodleian Library ...
archive url: http://www.ouls.ox.ac.uk/bodley/library/specialcollections
Bristol University Library
The Liberal Party collections at the University of Bristol Library originate from the acquisition in 1976 of the Gladstone Library of the National Liberal Club ...
archive url: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/is/
Coventry History Centre
Liberal Collections in the Archives ...
archive url: http://www.theherbert.org/index.php/home/history-centre
Dundee City Archives
Liberal Collections at the Archives ...
London Metropolitan Archives
The London Liberal Foundation and London Liberal Party records ...
archive url: http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/lma
Manchester Archives and Local Studies
Liberal History Archives at Manchester Archives and Local Studies ...
archive url: http://www.manchester.gov.uk/libraries/arls/
National Library of Scotland
Sources in the Manuscripts Division of the National Library of Scotland for the study of the Liberals and Liberal Democrats ...
archive url: http://www.nls.uk/
National Library of Wales
Liberal Party Archives at the National Library of Wales ...
archive url: http://www.llgc.org.uk/
Archives: individuals
Adrian Slade's interviews with leading party figures
...
archive url: http://www.markpack.org.uk/29338/adrian-slade-interviews/
Beveridge, William
Beveridge's papers at London School of Economics ...
archive url: http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/archives
Sandelson, Neville
Sandelson's papers at London School of Economics ...
archive url: http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/archives
Wainwright, Richard (1918-2003) and Lord Steel (1938-)
Project to catalogue the papers of Richard Wainwright and Lord David Steel at London School of Economics Archives ...
archive url: http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/archives
PhD theses
An analysis of the reform of the House of Lords, 1911-2000
Supervisor: Professor Vernon B. Bogdanor
Oxford University , 2006
Citation form:
D.Phil
An analysis of voting patterns for the Liberal Party, with initial reference to the General Election of 1966
Southampton Ph.D. , 1978
Clement Davies M.P. and the Liberal Party
Wales M.A. , 1976
Jo Grimond's leadership of the Liberal party
Supervisor - Professor Ben Pimlott
London, Ph.D , 1997
Seat-votes relationships in British general elections, 1955-97
Oxford, D.Phil , 2002
The electoral strategy and tactics of the British Liberal Party, 1945-70
London Ph.D , 1990
The grass-roots organization of the Liberal party, 1945-64
Supervisor - Dr. Michael W. Hart
Oxford, D.Phil , 2001
The growth of third party support in Britain: a comparative study of the electoral bases for the Liberal and Scottish National Parties successes during the 1970s
London School of Economics Ph.D. , 1983
The Liberal Party 1970 - 1983: its philosophy and political strategy
Leeds Ph.D. , 1999
The Liberal Party in S.W. England, 1929-59
Exeter Ph.D. , 1995
The making of Liberal Party policy, 1945-80
Reading Ph.D. , 1983
The strange death of Labour England: collective provision and social cohesion in Southwark, 1950-2000
Supervisor - Professor Avner Offer
Oxford, M.Phil , 2002
Research
The Liberal Party in Wales, 1966-1988
Aims to follow the development of the party from the general election of 1966 to the time of the merger with the SDP. PhD research at Cardiff University.
Nick Alderton
Contact: nickalito@hotmail.com
The Liberal Party's political communication, 1945-2002
Research on the Liberal party and Lib Dems' political communication. Any information welcome (including testimonies) about electoral campaigns and strategies.
Cynthia Boyer
Contact: CUFR Champollion, Place de Verdun, 81 000 Albi, France; +33 5 63 48 19 77; cynthia.boyer@univ-jfc.fr
