Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin summary

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Stanley Baldwin.

Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin, (born Aug. 3, 1867, Bewdley, Worcestershire, Eng.—died Dec. 14, 1947, Astley Hall, near Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire), British politician. After managing his family’s large industrial holdings, he became a Conservative member of the House of Commons (1908–37). He served as financial secretary of the treasury (1917–21) and president of the Board of Trade (1921–22), then was appointed prime minister (1923–24, 1924–29, 1935–37). He proclaimed a state of emergency in the general strike of 1926 and later secured passage of the antiunion Trade Disputes Act. As prime minister after 1935, he began to strengthen the British military while showing little public concern about the aggressive policies of Germany and Italy. He was criticized for not protesting the Italian conquest of Ethiopia. In 1936 he satisfied public opinion by procuring the abdication of Edward VIII, whose desire to marry divorcée Wallis Simpson, Baldwin believed, threatened the prestige of the monarchy.

Conservative Party Summary

Conservative Party, in the United Kingdom, a political party whose guiding principles include the promotion of private property and enterprise, the maintenance of a strong military, and the preservation of traditional cultural values and institutions. Since World War I the Conservative Party and

House of Lords Summary

House of Lords, the upper chamber of Great Britain’s bicameral legislature. Originated in the 11th century, when the Anglo-Saxon kings consulted witans (councils) composed of religious leaders and the monarch’s ministers, it emerged as a distinct element of Parliament in the 13th and 14th

Know about the evolution of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, the roles of its members, and their election

House of Commons Summary

House of Commons, popularly elected legislative body of the bicameral British Parliament. Although it is technically the lower house, the House of Commons is predominant over the House of Lords, and the name “Parliament” is often used to refer to the House of Commons alone. The origins of the House

prime minister Summary

Prime minister, the head of government in a country with a parliamentary or semipresidential political system. In such systems, the prime minister—literally the “first,” or most important, minister—must be able to command a continuous majority in the legislature (usually the lower house in a