43 Sell Wyburn Powell Clement Davies Review

REVIEWS Raising more money is vital. He a swimming pool and friends. I the youngest King’s Counsels of is enjoying his relatively new role also like cooking. I am very for- his day, he subsequently went as Chief Executive, in which he tunate in my very supportive wife on to achieve a successful busi- retains his overall campaigning Ann. She’s a teacher and was an ness career in which he became responsibility. He believes he activist in the party in Liverpool a director of Unilever. has helped to raise headquarters when we married in 1989. She He was elected to Parlia- morale and that he now has a comes to lots of party functions ment for Montgomeryshire, his very effective team to whom he with me and in by-elections she home county, in 1929. Liberal can delegate, but he also knows catches up with me for an inti- politics were fluid in the 1930s he must raise more funds. ‘That mate Chinese meal at midnight and Davies became a Simonite. must be my principal priority. with twenty other workers! And He seconded the motion on the Lack of money holds us back. We yes, I do enjoy being a peer but, King’s Speech in 1932. His early need it, not to spend on advertis- apart from voting, I don’t play a political career is a paradox. As ing but to get ourselves more free very active part.’ Liberal Party leader Davies was to publicity and to boost our target Well, there is an admission! champion the party’s independ- seats’ he says. If Chris did have more time for ence. Yet in the 1930s he was a With all that he takes on him- the House of Lords, it might be supporter of the Conservative- self, does he ever have any spare very different place. But, most of dominated administrations. This time and what does he like doing all, like Tim Razzall with whom political inconsistency was not with it? ‘I have very little but I do he works very closely, he relishes lost on Churchill, when Dav- like to switch off at Christmas and political crunches, and there are ies complained to him, in 1950, New Year and spend time with plenty of those to come. about Conservative candidates Liverpool friends, my wife’s fam- using the prefix Liberal in their ily and my younger brother, who Shorter and earlier versions of these nomenclature. Churchill replied: still lives in Liverpool. In the sum- interviews appeared in Liberal mer we like to go to a nice house Democrat News in November and As you were yourself for 11 in France with good food, wine, December 2003. years a National Liberal, and in that capacity supported the Governments of Baldwin and Neville Chamberlain, I should not presume to correct REVIEWS your knowledge of the moral, The forgotten leader Alan Wyburn-Powell: Clement Davies: Liberal Leader (Politico’s, 2003) Reviewed by Geoffrey Sell ow many Liberal Demo- been eclipsed. He has been crats could name the Lib- described as the forgotten leader. Heral Party’s first post-war Alan Wyburn-Powell therefore leader? Rather few, I suspect. performs a valuable service in Of course, it was all a long time rescuing his subject from politi- ago; nearly half a century has cal obscurity. elapsed since Clement Davies Davies was an emotional relinquished the leadership in man, and his life story is one favour of Jo Grimond. However, that stirs the emotions. It is a it is not just the passage of time story of significant achievement. but Davies’ place in the Liberal Born in rural Wales in 1884 and hall of fame that provides the educated at a state school, he explanation. Whilst Grimond’s obtained a place at Trinity Hall star has shone brightly in the College, Cambridge, where he Liberal firmament, Davies’ has obtained a first in Law. One of 38 Journal of Liberal History 43 Summer 2004 Journal of Liberal History 43 Summer 2004 39 REVIEWS intellectual and legal aspects of This biog- There is a strong element of Although Davies kept the adding a prefix or a suffix to the pathos about Davies’ leadership Liberal Party in the battle, it was honoured name of Liberal.1 raphy has of the Liberal Party. The author in the words of a former party rightly credits him with preserv- agent, more ‘through diligence Davies was clear that he had not strengths: ing the party’s independence than inspiration’.6 Davies was wavered in his Liberal allegiance. by refusing Churchill’s offer of a kind man, commented one Writing to Lord Davies in 1939, it reveals a post in his government after Liberal activist, but ‘he would he stated: new infor- the 1951 general election. Dav- not set the world alight’. Phyllis ies won the battle for political Preston, the party’s press officer, Since 1900 I have spoken on mation survival when to some it seemed was scathing in her assessment: Liberal platforms at every elec- to be a living corpse. It was not ‘He did his best, but it was not tion and I have never stood on about inevitable that the Liberal Party good enough. He hadn’t the a Conservative platform, not would have survived. There is makings of a leader. Hadn’t the even a Conservative supporter Davies’ no continuous third force in the dynamism.’7 Contemporary of the National Government.2 early life, United States; there is no neces- newspaper accounts were also sity to have a third party. Dav- critical of Davies’ failure to offer Until the outbreak of the Sec- it is well ies’ leadership, however, had a a clear strategy and vision for the ond World War Davies was an heroic quality: a David battling party. In his speech to the 1953 archetypical semi-detached MP, sourced against the Goliath of a seem- party assembly it was noted that, devoting much of his time to his ingly all-powerful two-party apart from a detailed reference business interests. War, however, and makes system. This courage in the face to local government reform, he brought Davies into political good use of of adversity was clearly demon- made no attempt to break down prominence. As Chairman of strated when Davies wrote: into hard practical policies the the Vigilantes Group he played work done broad principles of the radical a key role in the displacement You are quite right, we are not programme adopted the previous of Chamberlain in favour of by His- crushed or chloroformed and year.8 The Assembly was desper- Churchill. Labour MP Emmanuel if we have to go down it will ately seeking a lead, but was not Shinwell described him as ‘some- tory Group be fighting, knowing that even given one. At the 1955 Assem- thing of a kingmaker’; Cham- members. if we are shot down, our cause bly, where Grimond stood in for berlain referred to his erstwhile will still go on and will ulti- Davies who was ill, the Econo- supporter as ‘that treacherous However, it mately prevail.4 mist commented that ‘for one Welshman’. Davies relinquished moment of hope in the sunshine, the Liberal National whip in is not the The pathos is powerfully cap- the Party felt that it just might December 1939 and rejoined the tured in journalist Henry Fairlie’s have found a leader to take it out Liberal Party in 1942. definitive portrait: of the wilderness into which the War also brought personal account Welsh condemned it.’9 tragedy for Davies. Three of To him every political platform This biography has strengths: his children died in unrelated of the Lib- is a pulpit. When he rises to it reveals new information accidents, all at the age of 24. It address an audience, there is a about Davies’ early life, it is well is perhaps not surprising that he eral Party great sadness in his face, which sourced and makes good use of took solace in alcohol, some- if it does not prophesy disaster work done by History Group thing most of his political con- under Dav- for the nation, at least foretells members. However, it is not the temporaries were unaware of. ies’ leader- martyrdom for himself.5 definitive account of the Liberal According to Wyburn-Powell Party under Davies’ leadership. the effects of his drinking binges ship. That Clement Davies had all the tears That book is still to be written. were short-term memory loss and few of the joys of lead- and loss of temper. book is still ing a party. There is no doubt Geoffrey Sell is a college lecturer. He The 1945 general election that he held the pass during completed a PhD thesis on Liberal continued the Liberal Party’s to be writ- the most treacherous years in Revival: British Liberalism and decline and propelled Dav- ten. Liberal history; he enabled the Jo Grimond 1956–67. ies to centre stage. The unex- party to build again. Was this pected defeat of party leader Sir a sufficient legacy? Could he 1 H. G. Nicholas, The British Gen- Archibald Sinclair resulted in have done more? Although the eral Election of 1950 (London: Davies being chosen as Chair- Macmillan, 1951), p. 85. author is aware of some of Dav- 2 Letter to Lord Davies (his man of the parliamentary party. ies’ deficiencies he gives a rather predecessor as MP for Mont- He was seen by many as essen- too sympathetic account. He gomeryshire) dated 3 January tially a caretaker leader until Sin- states that Davies was a ‘natural 1939 – Clement Davies Papers, clair’s return.

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