Aberdeen South by-election, 1917

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The Aberdeen South by-election, 1917 was a parliamentary by-election for the House of Commons constituency of Aberdeen South comprising the local government wards in the southern part of the city of Aberdeen. The by-election took place on 3 April 1917.

By-elections, also spelled bye-elections, are used to fill elected offices that have become vacant between general elections.

Aberdeen South (UK Parliament constituency) Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom

Aberdeen South is a burgh constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and it elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. The current MP is Ross Thomson of the Conservative Party.

Contents

Vacancy

The by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting Liberal MP, George Esslemont for reasons of ill-health. [1] Esslemont had been MP for Aberdeen South since retaining the seat for the Liberals in a by-election in February 1907 following the appointment of James Bryce to be British Ambassador to the United States. Although he was aged only 57 years, Esslemont died on 2 October 1917, just a few months after stepping down from Parliament. [2]

George Birnie Esslemont was a Scottish Liberal politician. He was elected as Member of Parliament for Aberdeen South in 1907, and held the seat until he resigned in 1917.

James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce British academic, jurist, historian and Liberal politician

James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce, was a British academic, jurist, historian and Liberal politician.

Candidates

Liberals

On 1 March 1917, it was reported that the Liberals intended to put forward the name of Sir James Murray, the former MP for East Aberdeenshire. [3] In fact the local Liberals were in dispute over their candidate, reflecting the growing division in the party between those supporting the coalition government of David Lloyd George and those favouring the opposition Liberals led by H H Asquith. Murray was said to be a strong supporter of Lloyd George’s government. The Asquithians gave their backing to Vivian Phillipps, Asquith’s private secretary. A third name was also under consideration, that of Sir John Fleming, an ex-Provost of Aberdeen. [4] Fleming may well have been seen as a good compromise candidate, as, following the intervention of the prime minister himself, Murray was persuaded to withdraw from the contest and Fleming was formally selected. [5]

James Murray (East Aberdeenshire MP) Scottish Liberal Party politician

Sir James Murray was a Scottish Liberal Party politician.

EastAberdeenshire was a Scottish county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1868 to 1918 and from 1950 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Lloyd George ministry Government of the United Kingdom

Liberal David Lloyd George formed a coalition government in the United Kingdom in December 1916, and was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by King George V. It replaced the earlier wartime coalition under H. H. Asquith, which had been held responsible for losses during the Great War. Those Liberals who continued to support Asquith served as the Official Opposition. The government continued in power after the end of the war in 1918, though Lloyd George was increasingly reliant on the Conservatives for support. After several scandals including allegations of the sale of honours, the Conservatives withdrew their support after a meeting at the Carlton Club in 1922, and Bonar Law formed a government.

Conservatives

As partners in the wartime coalition government, the Conservatives abided by the electoral truce between the main parties and did not put forward a candidate. [6]

Others

Two other candidates came forward to contest Aberdeen South. James Watson, Professor of Chemistry at Anderson’s College, Glasgow declared he wished to stand as an independent citizen’s candidate, a vigorous supporter of what he called patriotic democracy. [7] Watson had contested the Bridgeton Division of Glasgow at the 1895 general election standing for the Independent Labour Party. [8]

Professor James Robertson Watson was a Scottish chemist and political activist.

University of Strathclyde university in Glasgow, Scotland

The University of Strathclyde is a public research university located in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded in 1796 as the Andersonian Institute, it is Glasgow's second-oldest university, with the university receiving its royal charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university. It takes its name from the historic Kingdom of Strathclyde.

Glasgow Bridgeton was a parliamentary constituency in the city of Glasgow. From 1885 to 1974, it returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.

The other candidate was Frederick Pethick-Lawrence. He sought election as a ‘Peace by Negotiation’ candidate and was sponsored by the Union of Democratic Control of which was the treasurer. [9]

Frederick Pethick-Lawrence, 1st Baron Pethick-Lawrence British politician

Frederick William Pethick-Lawrence, 1st Baron Pethick-Lawrence, PC was a British Labour politician, and campaigned for women’s suffrage.

The Union of Democratic Control was a British pressure group formed in 1914 to press for a more responsive foreign policy. While not a pacifist organisation, it was opposed to military influence in government.

The election

The writ for by-election was issued in Parliament on 26 March 1917. [10] Nomination day was 30 March, with polling to take place on 3 April. Despite the atmosphere of wartime campaigning and the absence of a Tory candidate, some Liberals were fearful of the result. It was reported that there had been a backlash amongst some of Sir James Murray’s supporters, who had not accepted his withdrawal and who refused to vote for Fleming; that Watson had the potential to get a large vote from Labour supporters, from Unionists, who had no candidate of their own, and disaffected Liberals. [11]

Result

The result however was a comfortable win for Fleming, with a majority of 1,776 votes over Watson or 34.7% of the poll. This was consistent with other election results in Scotland during the war with public opinion overwhelmingly pro-government. [12] Fleming took his seat in Parliament on 24 April 1917 [13] but only represented his constituency until the 1918 general election. Standing as an Independent (Asquithian) Liberal he lost to Frederick Thomson, a Conservative barrister who seems to have been awarded the Coalition Coupon. [14]

Fleming Sir John Fleming.jpeg
Fleming
Aberdeen South by-election, 1917 [15]
PartyCandidateVotes%±
Liberal John Fleming 3,283 64.1
Independent James Watson 1,507 29.4
Independent Frederick Pethick-Lawrence 333 6.5
Majority 1,776 34.7
Turnout 37.1
Liberal hold Swing

See also

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References

  1. ↑ The Times, 27 February 1917 p10
  2. ↑ The Times, 4 October 1917 p11
  3. ↑ The Times, 1 March 1917 p5
  4. ↑ The Times, 16 March 1917 p6
  5. ↑ The Times, 21 March 1917 p5
  6. ↑ F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results, 1885-1918; Macmillan Press, 1974 p492
  7. ↑ The Times, 26 March 1917 p5
  8. ↑ F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results, 1885-1918; Macmillan Press, 1974 p504
  9. ↑ Brian Harrison, Frederick William Pethick-Lawrence; Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, 2004-13
  10. ↑ The Times, 27 March 1917 p12
  11. ↑ The Times, 27 March 1917 p5
  12. ↑ Christopher Harvie, No Gods and Precious Few Heroes: Twentieth Century Scotland, Edinburgh University Press, 1998 p29
  13. ↑ The Times, 25 April 1917 p8
  14. ↑ F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results, 1918-1949; Political Reference Publications, Glasgow, 1969 p574
  15. ↑ Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN   9781349022984.
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