The internet is an amazing tool for gathering information and provides a wealth USING WIKIPEDIA TO of helpful sites for learning about the people and events that LEARN ABOUT have made Liberal history – not least the LIBERAL HISTORY website of the Liberal Democrat History

Group itself (www. ikipedia is a what your purpose is.’ For exam- liberalhistory.org.uk). m u l t i l i n g u a l , ple, not all facts can be verified w e b - b a s e d straight away by reviewers but One great advantage enc yclopaed i a those articles that are subject to of the Internet as which uses links query will usually contain an alert Was cross-references to guide the at the head of the page indicating a research tool is reader from the initial article to that the reader should be cautious. related pages or to external web- Reasons vary, from insufficient the speed at which sites. Articles also include guides referencing and internal links to to further reading and contribu- articles that appear to contradict information can be tors tend to cite their sources themselves. Generally speaking, traced and accessed carefully (though not always!). Wikipedia facilitates the reader’s Its most innovative aspect is that research immensely via its mul- and the ease with Wikipedia articles are written by tiple internal and external links the public: anyone can log on and (just click on the highlighted which links can be create new pages or edit existing words) and its – usually compre- made to similar sites material. Volunteers do not need hensive – further reading and specialised qualifications to con- source lists. in order to build up tribute, since their primary role For the general reader or ama- is to write articles that cover their teur historian, it seems safest to a complete picture existing knowledge. However, in agree with those academics and practice, most entries are written teachers who advise that while of the chosen topic. by people who know their subject Wikipedia cannot be accepted or There are so many well or are experts or professionals cited as an authoritative source, in their sphere. Of course, there it remains a useful starting point websites relating to are standards to be maintained: from which to gain contextual the website is subject to edito- information about your subject subjects such as Liberal rial administration, oversight and matter and can point the way to history and politics management. Published editing more reliable and fuller source policies exist, which contributors material. that to list them would are requested to follow, and arti- In order to search for an arti- cles are subject to peer review in cle you need only to enter the prove to be an endless order to avoid plagiarism and libel text into the search box and press task. This article is and to ensure that articles are cor- ‘enter’. But be warned, Wikipe- rectly sourced with citations and dia can be very case- and punc- therefore confined references. tuation-sensitive – so be sure to follow the exact wording and to the consideration punctuation of the articles sug- of one specific, albeit Is Wikipedia a reliable source gested here to access the right for Liberal history? pages. huge, website – Wikipedia users do need to be Having arrived at the Wikipedia wary. Even the founder of Wiki- main page (http://en.wikipedia. Wikipedia. Graham pedia, Jimmy Wales, has com- org/wiki/Main_Page), where to Lippiatt explores mented that Wikipedia may not start? Below is a list of pages organ- be suitable for academic uses, ised around the theme of Liberal its possibilities – and saying, ‘It is pretty good, but you history: political parties, people, have to be careful with it. It’s good liberal philosophy, thought and limitations.. enough knowledge, depending on thinkers, parliamentary reform

Journal of Liberal History 65 Winter 2009–10 17 using wikipedia to learn about liberal history and legislation, parliamentary elec- Wikipedia and Joseph Chamberlain, which day, follows it. The three leaders tions, parliamentary constituencies split from Gladstone over Irish of the SDP are included in the and local elections. users do Home Rule in 1886 and formally Social Democratic Party (UK) page. The names of the relevant merged with the Conservatives For the period before the forma- pages in Wikipedia are shown need to be in 1912. tion of the Liberal Party see List here in italics. All page names of United Kingdom Whig and allied were correct at the time of going wary. Even • Alliance Party of Northern Ireland party leaders 1801–1859. to print. – Pages about the Liberal Demo- the founder crats’ sister party in Northern Ire- For details of Members of Parlia- land. The section about its origins ment there are a number of pages: Political parties of Wikipedia, connects to a short page about the Jimmy Wales, now-defunct Ulster Liberal Party • List of Liberal Party (UK) MPs • Liberal Democrats – This is about and biographies of its two MPs, – This lists all Liberal MPs from the present-day party, its structure has com- Albert McElroy and Sheelagh 1924–88 and their constituencies and policies and history from the Murnaghan. and takes you to constituency 1988 merger to date. mented that profiles and biographies of the • Liberal-Labour (UK) – The Lib- MPs where these exist. There are • Liberal Party (UK) – This article Wikipedia eral-Labour movement refers similar pages for the following rel- discusses the ideology, origins to the practice of local Liberal evant political parties: and history of the Liberal Party may not be associations in the late nine- from the Whigs until 1988 when teenth century accepting and • List of Social Democratic Party it merged with the Social Demo- suitable for supporting candidates who were (UK) MPs cratic Party. financially maintained by trade academic unions. These candidates stood • List of National Liberal Party (UK) • Social Democratic Party (UK) – for Parliament with the aim of MPs Information about the origins and uses. representing the working classes, history of the SDP from 1981–88. while remaining supportive of • List of Liberal Democrat MPs the Liberal Party in general. • National Liberal Party (UK) – The page has a link to the article • Members of the House of Lords – There were two distinct groups Category:Liberal-Labour politicians This gives profiles of most of the bearing the name National Lib- (UK), which gives biographies of current peers and lists their party eral. The first comprised the Lib-Lab MPs. affiliation and type of peerage. supporters of the Lloyd George coalition in 1922–23. The second • Lib-Lab Pact – This page not • List of Life Peerages – This page included those Liberals support- only describes the Parliamentary lists everyone who has been cre- ing the National Government arrangement of 1977–78 between ated a Life Peer from the intro- from 1931 onwards. From Octo- Liberal leader David Steel and duction of the Life Peerages Act ber 1931 they styled themselves Prime Minister Jim Callaghan, of 1958 until the present day. as Liberal Nationals and were but also looks at earlier attempts Unfortunately it does not show entirely separate from the offi- at cooperation between the Lib- their political party, so you have cial Liberals, who returned to eral and Labour parties and some to know who you are looking for, the opposition benches in 1933. more recent ones in the devolved but most entries have biographical These MPs and their supporters administrations since 1999. profiles. From this page you can in the constituencies gradually link to lists of all the hereditary moved closer to the Conserva- peerages and baronies but again, tives. After 1948, the party was People no political party affiliations are renamed the National Liberal Who interests you? You can start indicated. Party and was so closely aligned by going to the pages of any of the with the Conservatives that the great Liberals who have made his- • List of British Members of Parlia- two eventually merged in 1968. tory: Gladstone, Lloyd George, ment who crossed the floor (from 1945 Jo Grimond, Roy Jenkins, or you to 2008) – This is an interesting and • British Whig Party – A page about might prefer to start with key useful page for information on the Whigs, one of the groups thinkers like , John SDP members. from which the Liberal Party was Stuart Mill or William Beveridge. formed, from their origins around However, if you prefer a more sys- • Category:Liberal MPs (UK) – the Glorious Revolution of 1688 tematic approach, the best place to Here you will find listed alpha- to the formation of the Liberal begin is: betically all Liberal MPs elected at Party in 1859. any time where their biographies • List of United Kingdom Liberal feature in Wikipedia. • Peelites – Information about the Party leaders – this page lists lead- breakaway faction of the Con- ers of the party, leaders in the servatives from 1846 who became Commons and the Lords from Philosophies, thought and part of the Liberal Party in 1859. 1859–1988. A page entitled List of thinkers United Kingdom Liberal Democrat • Liberal Unionist Party – This was leaders, which takes the story from • Liberalism – This page offers a the party, led by Lord Hartington the merger of 1988 to the present good starting point for learning

18 Journal of Liberal History 65 Winter 2009–10 using wikipedia to learn about liberal history about the ideology of liberal- Parliamentary reform and many other obscure yet interest- ism. It is part of a series of pages legislation ing topics. about liberalism in its varied and Parliamentary reform is a key distinct forms. It has sections on area of Liberal thought and policy • MPs elected in the United Kingdom the development of liberalism, from the eighteenth century to general election, 1874 – This series the history of liberal thought and the present day; aspects of con- of pages contains information to contributions to liberal theory. stitutional, parliamentary and complement the lists of Liberal It provides information on the franchise reform can be followed MPs available in other articles. It various schools of liberalism – for through the Representation of the For the gen- lists every constituency contested, example, , classi- People Act pages, which begin the MP elected and his/her party cal liberalism, American liberal- with the background to the Great eral reader and provides links to constitu- ism, etc. – as well as Reform Bill of 1832 and trace the ency and MP profiles, where they links to pages concerning thinkers history, politics and some of the or amateur exist. The first page in the series is and ideas (e.g. laissez-faire, free- personalities involved as far as the historian, it on the 1874 general election. You dom, etc.) last Representation of the People can then, starting from this arti- Act in 2000. seems safest cle, follow the elections through • – This article deals For legislation, go to List of Acts to 2005 and after – the series cur- with the Radical movement in of Parliament in the United King- to agree with rently ends with the next general Britain in the nineteenth century, dom. Here, you can research the election, to be held before June its relationship with overseas vari- Acts of Parliament passed under those aca- 2010. ants and how it overlaps with ele- any Liberal government by scroll- ments of liberalism. ing through the years during demics and which the Liberals were in power. Parliamentary constituencies • – An analysis of Regrettably, there are very few teachers who some different understandings of links to pages with detailed infor- • List of United Kingdom Parliament progressive politics and how they mation on those Acts. advise that constituencies – These pages list connect to liberalism. current seats in Parliament with while Wiki- descriptions of the geographical • List of liberal theorists – This is an Parliamentary elections area that each covers, as well as the incomplete list of individual con- pedia cannot MPs (specifying political party) tributors to liberal political theory • United Kingdom general elections who have represented the seat on a worldwide scale, which also – Here you will find details of be accepted since it was created. Some (too includes links to biographies of all general elections since 1802, few, unfortunately) have recent many liberal thinkers and philoso- with dates, Prime Ministers, par- or cited as an election results in full and a hand- phers from Locke and Mill to fig- ties and majorities in the House of authorita- ful give full results going back to ures such as Keynes or Kymlicka. Commons. This page has internal the early twentieth century. links to detailed articles on each tive source, • Liberal reforms – This is a review general election from 1802 to • List of former United Kingdom Par- of the social reforms of the Liberal 2005 with information on seats, it remains liamentary constituencies – Details of government from 1906–14, which gains, losses, overall votes, etc. now defunct Parliamentary seats are considered as having laid the a useful going back as far as the thirteenth foundations for what became the • For UK by-elections, there is a century, again with descriptions welfare state. series of pages listing all parlia- starting of the geographical area covered mentary by-elections since 1885 and lists of MPs and their parties. • Oxford Manifesto – This is worth with dates and names of winners. point from visiting because the Oxford Many of these include details on • List of multi-member constituencies Manifesto, written in 1947, is the results and candidates. Start at the which to gain in the United Kingdom and predeces- document which inspired the page entitled List of United King- sor Parliaments – Multi-member creation of , dom by-elections (1885–1900) and contextual constituencies, with more than the worldwide group that brings follow the series through to the one MP elected by first-past-the together Liberal parties from all present day. There is also a series information post, were common in Britain nations and promotes liberalism of Category pages, which contain until they were abolished in 1918. as an international philosophy. links to articles on selected by- about your This often meant that a constitu- The page includes a link to the elections in specific areas, such as ency was represented by MPs of article about Liberal Interna- Welsh constituencies, or jurisdic- subject mat- different parties, creating a crude tional, which in turn provides tions such as the Scottish Parlia- ter and can form of proportionality, thus ena- links to member parties from ment. Go to the ‘categories’ index bling the Liberal Party to make around the world, the umbrella page and type in by-elections in the point the arrangements with Labour in cer- groups for European liberal par- display box to show the list. tain industrial seats to ensure one ties, the Alliance of Liberals way to more member from each party would and Democrats for Europe and • United Kingdom by-election records be elected. These pages list the the European Liberal Demo- – this page contains informa- reliable and seats as far back as 1295 and some, crat and Reform Party, as well tion about notable records at but unfortunately not all, give full as other international Liberal by-elections, such as the biggest fuller source election results with names of all organisations, think-tanks and swings, lowest or highest shares of candidates, parties and numbers of foundations. the vote, smallest majorities and material. votes.

Journal of Liberal History 65 Winter 2009–10 19 using wikipedia to learn about liberal history

Local elections history of the London County biography opens up dozens of The information available on Council (LCC) from its founda- other potential links to internal local elections, election results tion in 1889 until its replacement Wikipedia or external internet and Liberal councillors is not yet in 1965 by the Greater London sites. But if the article or biog- well developed on Wikipedia. Council (GLC). It lists the lead- raphy or other information you However, a good starting point is ers of the LCC, the first four of want is not in any of the pages United Kingdom local elections, 1998. whom were Progressives (the recommended in this article or the This page is the first in a series, name by which Liberal support- links from them to other sites, just which can be followed through ers were known) on the council enter what you are looking for in to 2007, which shows the over- in the late nineteenth and early the Wikipedia search box and see all outcome for the parties in all twentieth century. The pages what comes up. If it cannot find local authority elections that took entitled Greater London Coun- an exact match it will give near place each year (including may- cil and Greater London Authority misses or suggestions for similar oral contests where appropriate). also contain information in elec- pages. And, if whilst browsing Unfortunately, it does not provide tions or provide links to related through Wikipedia you find a details on individual ward results pages. Alternatively you can go gap in the Liberal history knowl- with information on candidates to Category:Elections in London for edge base about which you are an and votes. information about GLC, GLA and expert, why not log on and create Mayoral elections in the capital some pages yourself? • London County Council – One from 1964 onwards. of the more useful pages about Graham Lippiatt is Secretary of the historical local authorities and You will tend to find that sim- Liberal Democrat History Group elections, this article recites the ply accessing a single article or

The papers of Herbert Samuel at the Parliamentary Archives

erbert Louis Samuel Liberal Party Organisation which Lord Samuel retained) and (1870–1963), 1st Viscount 1927–29; Chairman of the Liberal Cabinet Papers which, with a few HSamuel, was born on 6 Parliamentary Party 1931–35; and exceptions, he returned to the November 1870 in Liverpool. He Liberal Leader in the House of Cabinet Office. was educated at University Col- Lords 1944–55. On 8 June 1937, The largest series is SAM/A – lege School, London, 1884–88, and he was created Viscount Samuel Herbert Samuel’s papers relating Balliol College, Oxford, 1889–93. of Mount Carmel and of Toxteth to political matters, 1880–1962 He married Beatrice Miriam in the City of Liverpool. He died (163 files). SAM/A consists of Franklin on 17 November 1897. on 5 February 1963. subject files and general politi- He was Liberal MP for the Cleve- In 1963 the second Viscount cal files including a great deal of land Division of Yorkshire 1902– Samuel, on behalf of his father’s material relating to the internal 18, and for the Darwen Division of executors, deposited in the Par- affairs of the Liberal Party, and Lancashire 1929–35. liamentary Archives the papers correspondence with such promi- Positions Samuel held include: which now form series SAM/A– nent Liberals as Asquith, Herbert Parliamentary Under-Secretary F. The Samuel papers cover his Gladstone, Lloyd George, Runci- of State for the Home Depart- life and career from his childhood man, Reading, Crewe, Lothian, ment 1905–09; Chancellor of until the year of his death. Lord Lady Oxford, Archibald Sinclair the Duchy of Lancaster 1909–10; Samuel took care, so far as pos- and (overseas) W. L. Mackenzie Postmaster-General 1910–14; sible, to preserve intact both the King. There is also correspon- President of the Local Govern- personal and political letters, and dence with Fabians and Labour ment Board 1914–15; again also the papers which he received. leaders such as the Webbs, George Postmaster-General and Chan- In addition he kept drafts and Bernard Shaw, Graham Wallas, cellor of the Duchy of Lancaster copies of his own letters and made Ramsay Macdonald, Snowden 1915–16; Home Secretary 1916, a practice of writing notes con- and Charles Trevelyan. Particu- and again 1931–32; High Com- cerning any important events in larly notable are the files relating missioner for Palestine 1920–25 which he had participated at the to the Marconi Contract (SAM/ and also Commander-in-Chief time when they occurred. The A/38–9), Irish Affairs 1911–16 there 1922–25. For the Liberal principal gaps in the collection (SAM/A/41), the formation Party he was Chairman of the are Departmental Papers (few of of the Coalition Government,

20 Journal of Liberal History 65 Winter 2009–10