What is it about?
The 'Age of Reform' in Westmorland tightened the grip of the Tory Lowther family and crushed incipient democracy; for half a century the effect of a wider franchise and the elimination of rotten boroughs was the elimination of popular participation in politics. But the persistence of nonconformity and owner-occupier farming meant that there remained the potential for a realistic Liberal challenge; Westmorland saw a democratic renaissance in the last two Victorian decades. This paper charts the return of contested elections in the county and explains why they were won and lost.
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Why is it important?
It amplifies/qualifies the arguments of Jon Lawrence and James Vernon in a specific context, and illustrates how a political machine worked. It demonstrates pre-Cannadine aristocratic dominance, and shows the importance of personal factors in the putative process of family decline. It provides insights into the impact of the Victorian local press.
Perspectives
I had previously published detailed studies of the 1880 Westmorland Election - the first to becontested since 1832 and the strange career of Richard Rigg, elected Liberal MP for North Westmoprland in 1900. This paper put them into a broader historical and historiographical context. It was also a springboard for a subsequent paper on Sir James Whitehead, as well as for explorations of the last Lowther contributions to Parliament.
Mr Andrew Nicholas Connell
Appleby Grammar School
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The Domination of Lowtherism and Toryism in Westmorland Parliamentary Elections, 1818–1895, Northern History, September 2008, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1179/174587008x322571.
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